Singer, Dancer, Little Star Series of Oneshots
by hayleynymphadora
Summary: A series of oneshots where Cassandra and Shelby, long time partners, raise their daughter Rachel. I'm gladly taking prompts if you have any for me.
1. A Day at the Zoo

**Hey! So we took my little cousins and little brother to the zoo the other day and inspiration struck me and I thought about how cute it would be if Shelandra took little Rachel to the zoo. Then my mind elaborated on it and I decided to make a oneshot series about Shelandra raising Rachel and I decided to call it the Singer, Dancer, Little Star series.**

**So I'm taking any prompts you want written, if I can get them to work! xD of course I'll credit your ideas in the authors notes and thank you IMMENSELY for any prompts you send to me. You can either put them in the reviews or PM me. Or, you can put them in my ask on tumblr (my tumblr is the-queen-and-her-savior ). **

**Tell me what you think! This took me longer than I expected it to, but i'm proud if how it turned out, all the same.**

**So for this first oneshot, Cassie decides to treat Rachel (and Shelby) to a day at the zoo for Rachel's early birthday present. Oh, and Rachel LOVES pandas. xD**

**with love always, hayleynymphadora**

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Singer, Dancer, Little Star Series

**A Day at the Zoo**

Everything was peaceful in the Corcoran household; as it usually was, at 5 in the morning. Shelby Corcoran and her long time girlfriend, Cassandra July, were fast asleep in bed. Both were aware of the long day ahead of them, and both were anticipating a little ball of energy, (Shelby's biological daughter, Rachel), to wake them up from their relaxed state very early.

And they were right.

The little girl rushed into Shelby's bedroom, an excited little flame with long, chocolate brown hair, and gorgeous, wide hazel eyes. "Mommy! Mama!" she exclaimed, jumping up onto the king bed and pulling back the huge black comforter, exposing her parents to a shocking cold. "Wake up! Going to the zoo!"

Cassandra moaned upon being woke up, but she then remembered that it was Rachel. Cass wasn't a morning person, but for her little Rachel, she could pretend to be one. She sat up and pulled her tangled blonde hair out of her eyes. "Well good morning to you too, Rach," she smiled tiredly.

Rachel sat on her knees on top of Shelby's stomach. She poked Shelby's face to wake her. Cassie laughed,

"Be careful, don't poke mommy's eyes out, okay?"

If Rachel acknowledged her, it went unknown. "Mommy," she poked at Shelby's cheeks and the brunette mother, who was only pretending to sleep, at this point, tried her best not to laugh. As an actress, you'd think it'd be easier. "Mama's up! Going to the zoo?!"

The whole "Mommy" and "Mama" thing grew from the fact that Shelby and Cassandra, though only still considered girlfriends, shared Rachel. Cassandra had been a part of Rachel's life since she was very very young, and ever since Rachel could talk, Cassie was "Mama" and Shelby was "Mommy".

Cassie reached her hand out and squeezed Shelby's side. The gesture made Shelby gasp and move back—her sides were her tickle spots, among others, that made her lose all senses of acting. "Yes, wake up, Shelbs. We're going to the zoo." Cass turned on her side and kissed her lover's cheek, warmly.

Slowly, Shelby's eyes fluttered. "How could I forget?" she smiled. This day trip had been the only thing Rachel had been talking about for a week, ever since Cassie decided to ask, 6 months before her actual birthday, what Rachel wanted to do for her special day of turning four. The young girl, whose real birthday was in December, had begged her mothers to take her to the zoo. Cass insisted it would be _her_ present to Rachel—she always loved to spoil the child.

Even though Shelby and Cassie had been a couple for five years and Cass stayed at Shelby's virtually every night anyways, they didn't live together. They had separate jobs, separate schedules, and liked to take things slowly with each other, (both women had had serious heartbreak and trusting issues from their pasts). In any case, their incomes were separate as well, and Cassie liked to spend every spare penny she earned on their Rachel. She wanted their little star to have the world. Shelby wanted this as well, but Cassie's stubborn nature and insisting on buying almost everything (because she did earn more than Shelby did), left Shelby to pay for essentials like food and electricity.

Because of this zoo trip and Cassie's refusal to let Shelby pay a dime, they decided to each splurge for Rachel's birthday separately—Cassie for the zoo in the summer, and Shelby for whatever Rach decided her little heart wanted in December.

Rachel crawled off of Shelby and started bouncing, shaking the bed frame and making it smack against the back wall. "Come on, come on, come on,"

"Don't jump on the bed, baby girl," Shelby laughed lightly.

"Then get up!" the young Corcoran said, exasperated.

So, her mothers did. Cassie retreated to the closet, and Shelby and Rachel stayed on the bed; Shelby was sitting up, so Rachel supposed it would do, for now.

Cass searched through the clothes in Shelby's closet, finding a white tank top and a black lace t shirt, as well as a pair of jean shorts. She pulled them out, stripped, and put them on. Shelby watched her, accusingly.

"Oh, I'm wearing your clothes," Cassie informed her after the fact, pulling her hair behind her shoulders and walking to the connected bathroom to brush her hair.

Shelby finally stood and went to the closet to find herself something to wear. "Don't you always?" she asked.

Pressing her lips together, Cassie shook her head. "Mmm, not on weekdays…"

_Because on weekdays you wear a leotard and fish nets with stilettos…_

With an eye roll, Shelby found a pair of black shorts and a purple tank top. She put them on and Rachel bounced in place on the bed, (despite her mother's asking her not to), ever so impatiently. As Rachel Corcoran usually was. "Can we eat and gooooo?"

The women laughed. "Calm down, Rachie," Shelby said kindly. "We have to all get ready before we can go, okay? Did you want pancakes for breakfast?"

Rachel bobbed her head up and down quickly in answer.

"Okay, come on," she picked up her little girl who was growing up so fast and put her on her hip. She walked them into the bathroom, gave Cassandra a peck on the lips and said, "Good morning, by the way,"

"Morning," Cass smiled back, finishing running the brush through her hair.

"I'm going to start breakfast," Shelby informed her.

Cass winced, "Shouldn't you do something with your hair first?" she teased.

Shelby bumped her with her hip. "Hush now you; be nice."

"Yeah, be nice!" Rachel said from Shelby's side.

"I am nice, panda-boo." Cassie scrunched up her nose and looked at Rachel with a smile before poking Rachel's nose with her finger.

They often called her panda-boo because of her love (or, more commonly known as her obsession) with pandas. Hence, her reasoning for wanting to go to the zoo, besides the fact that she loved animals in general and had never, in fact, been to the zoo.

"Yeah, Mommy, she _is_ nice," Rachel turned on Shelby—she never truly knew which mother's side she wanted to take.

Shelby adjusted Rachel on her hip so she wouldn't fall. "How come you always take Mama's side?" she joked. "Maybe _she _should make you pancakes!"

Rachel bugged her eyes out. "Mama can't cook!" she exclaimed.

At this, Cassandra dropped her mouth in protest, even though she knew it was a very true statement. Shelby grinned from ear to ear. "Oh yeah. That's why I do the cooking, huh Rachie?"

Rachel nodded. "Let's goooo."

Laughing, Shelby carried her out to the kitchen and got out a mixing bowl for the pancakes. Once she had them starting to cook on the griddle, Cassie joined them, ready for the day and gorgeous as always, in the kitchen. She sat at the counter and propped her head up in her hands, watching her Shelby make breakfast. Shelby was so beautiful. She moved about the kitchen with a sort of grace that Cassandra, as a dancer, admired immensely. So many times Cassie had asked Shelby to dance with her. She only did it on rare occasions, but oh did Cassie love when she did.

Rachel sat herself up at the counter next to Cassie, copying her posture. "How many pancakes do you want?" Shelby asked, turning around and spying her families' actions. She laughed. "What are you two doing?"

"Nothing," Rachel said suspiciously, with a giggle.

"Nothing, huh?" Cassie asked her, tickling her sides. "Nothing? Are you copying me now? This doesn't look like nothing!" she laughed along with Rachel.

"Mama…" Rachel giggled loudly. Cassandra stopped tickling her and kissed her forehead.

"Three for me," she answered Shelby.

"Three for me," Rachel copied. Shelby raised an eyebrow.

"That's a heavy load for a little girl," she said. "How about two? And if you don't finish you can just eat it later?"

Rachel nodded at the idea.

"Do you have an outfit picked out, Rachie?" Cass wondered.

At this Rachel shook her head. This was odd, considering the little girl liked to plan out EVERYTHING in advance as soon as she could. Like Shelby, she could often be quite OCD about situations. But the young little Corcoran hadn't thought that far ahead—she had been too busy thinking about waking up her mommies and seeing the pandas at the zoo.

"Come help!" Rachel exclaimed, jumping down from her seat at the counter and running to her bedroom.

"Rachel, please don't run in the house!" Shelby called after her. Cassie shook her head with a laugh.

"She has too much energy in the morning," she said, getting down from her seat and walking towards Shelby, wrapping her arms around the woman's waist and placing a kiss on her cheek.

"Mmm," Shelby agreed. "She has too much energy always. Maybe the zoo will tire her out?"

"Right," Cassie rolled her eyes and kissed Shelby's cheek again before heading towards Rachel's room. She was being summoned as Rachel yelled,

"MAMA! COME ONNNNN!"

When Cassie made it to Rachel's room, Rachel had her closet wide open as well as all of her dresser drawers. "Help," she repeated herself.

"Well what do you _want_ to wear?" Cass asked, sitting on Rachel's bed. "It's your birthday, Rachie."

"Nuh uh!" Rachel exclaimed.

"It's your birthday _present_," Cass corrected herself. Rachel went over to Cassie and sat on her lap.

After a moment of thought, the little girl spoke, "Can I wear a dress?" she wondered.

At this, Cassie put a finger to her chin in fake contemplation, joking around with the little girl. "Hmmm….how about a sundress?" she said. "And a pair of shorts underneath so you can still run around and play?"

"Okay!" Rachel hopped off of Cassandra's lap almost roughly and rushed to her closet. Rachel had a lot of clothes (as did most spoiled children) and even more sundresses and skirts than she had pairs of jeans. After stepping up onto the stool Shelby had made so that Rachel could in fact reach her clothes, she searched through the dresses twice. Finally, she settled on a black sundress with big white polka dots. (The black sundress was always an ongoing battle between Cassandra, who found the concept of a BLACK sundress to be a little off, and Shelby who argued that dark colors attracted the sun and therefore made it a SUN dress). Underneath, she pulled on a pair of jean shorts that Cassie picked out for her. After she was dressed, Cassandra got out Rachel's hair brush and started brushing the girl's long, straight brown hair. It was so thin and fine, just like Shelby's. By the time she was done with this, Shelby was calling them to the kitchen so they could eat.

After breakfast, Shelby decided to do Rachel's hair for her.

"What do you want, Rach?" she asked. "Braids? Pigtails? Dancer's bun? Ponytail?"

"Hmm…..braids!" she decided.

"How many, baby girl? Two?"

Rachel nodded and Shelby started to separate Rachel's hair into two parts and braid each part.

"Cass, do we have everything ready?" She asked of her girlfriend.

Cass waved her hand at Shelby's question. "I've got everything taken care of Shelbs, don't do your crazy OCD thing today. It'll be fine."

"Okay…" this did not reassure Shelby. Not at all. And she didn't love the fact that Cassandra referred to her preparedness as her "crazy OCD thing".

"Stop worrying, Shelbs. This is my present to Rach. I got this."

"Okay," she still wasn't very certain, but by all means…

Finally, after what seemed like forever to the little girl, they were driving down the road and towards the zoo. Rachel was super psyched about it, and would not stop talking about it.

"Are we gonna see pandas, mama?!" she asked, kicking her dangling legs in a rhythm against the car seat.

"I'm sure we will, munchkin," Cass answered from behind the wheel. She looked at Shelby with a knowing smile and her girlfriend returned the smile, warmly. She was thankful that Cassie was doing this today. Rachel had been so restless and eager to do something this summer and with two mothers who work, (even though Shelby worked from home), doing something every day to occupy their little ball of energy was not something easily accomplished.

"Can I get a panda?" Rachel wondered curiously.

"Not a real one, surely," Shelby laughed. "A stuffed panda, maybe. Like all of your other panda toys? You can add it to your collection."

"Okay! But what about a pet?"

Cassie laughed at their daughter's little imagination. "Where do you suppose we have room for a pet panda, Rachie?"

"My room!" she exclaimed in a "Duh, Mama!" sort of fashion.

"The panda isn't going to fit in your room, sweetheart," Shelby informed her sadly.

Rachel stuck out her lower lip and crossed her arms over her chest. "No fair." She said. And was quiet for the rest of the ride, until she saw the sign for the zoo, and she got excited again.

"Her enthusiasm amuses me," Shelby said softly to Cassie. "They're just animals."

"You know she LOVES her animals, though. You watch, when she gets older we'll realize we'll be raising a vegetarian." Cass said with a smirk as she pulled into the parking lot. "We're here, Rachie," she stated a fact that was obvious to the young Corcoran.

Rachel squealed. "Animals!" she kicked her feet against the seat again, eagerly.

Shelby got to Rachel's door and helped her unbuckle, pulling her up into her arms. But the little girl was too squirrely to keep still in the air, so Shelby slowly put her down onto the pavement and took her hand. "Okay, there are a couple of rules first, Rach. Look at me, please," she crouched down to Rachel's level and Rachel forced herself to look at her mommy instead of the statues of giraffes and lions.

"You have to be holding either my hand or Mama's hand at all times, okay? You can't go running off. This is a big zoo."

Rachel nodded. "Okay,"

"And you have to promise me you'll be good, okay? No fits today. We're going to have fun, alright?"

Rachel nodded again and took her mommy's hand. Cass walked on the other side of Rachel, who then decided to take her Mama's hand as well.

After paying admission, each person's hand was stamped with a purple zebra.

Though Rachel loved animals, she grew up in the city, and wasn't accustomed to seeing all of these different types of animals from all over the world in one place. A lot of them were foreign to her, as well as their names.

"What do you want to see first, Rach?" Cass held the zoo map down to her level so she could point to which animal she wanted to see.

"Pandas!" she said without looking at the map. Cass looked on the map for the pandas, wondering why she even asked what she already knew the answer to.

"Okay, baby girl, looks like the pandas are all the way towards the back. How about we see them last? And then we can ride the train back to the front, how's that sound?" she asked, hopeful. It wasn't as if they wouldn't have to go through the whole zoo to see them anyways. Of course they would be in the back.

"Last?!" Rachel pouted out her lower lip.

"But we WILL see them, okay?" Shelby kissed the top of her little girl's head. "I promise."

"Okay…"

"You want to see the penguinarium first? You'll like the penguins, Rach," Shelby said, reading the map so they knew how to get there.

"Peggins?"

Cassie giggled at the pronunciation. Their daughter was so cute. "Penguins, Rachie, yes. They swim and play on the ice."

"Brr. Okay!" she stuck her hand out and Cassie took it and Shelby took the other one and they walked to the penguinarium.

"We should've brought a wagon or something for her, she's not going to want to walk the whole time," Shelby observed.

"When she gets tired I'll carry her," Cassie shrugged.

Shelby looked at the woman she fell in love with and tilted her head with a smile. "You don't have to carry her. I can carry her."

Cassie rolled her eyes and grinned. "I don't HAVE to do any of this, Shelbs. I want to."

Shelby's stomach fluttered.

. . .

The penguinarium smelled horrible. Like fish and old water and penguins who don't get bathed with soap, just the old water. Rachel scrunched up her nose. "Peggins smell bad." She complained.

Shelby and Cassandra scrunched their noses with her. "Yes," Shelby agreed. "They do."

"Oh, but they're so cute!" Cassie pointed at one who jumped into the water and was swimming around, pressing his little face up to the glass. "Look, Rachie, he's looking at you!"

Rachel giggled and Shelby released her hand so she could run up to the glass and look.

The penguin swam past her 4 times and watched her as it went past her each time. The young little Corcoran was enchanted by it. "Peggin!" she giggled.

Cass smiled. "Pen-guin, sweetheart,"

"Peggin!" she insisted.

"Okay, so I guess we've seen the peggins," Shelby pressed her lips together to hide a smile. Should we go see something else now?

After seeing the lions, tigers, and bears, (after which Shelby did not hesitate to go, "Oh, my!"), they went to see the zebras, which Rachel thought were pretty but not as pretty as the peacocks, which were Cassandra's favorite.

The peacock had jumped out of its fencing and was walking around the concrete paths along with all the people. Rachel laughed. "She's free!" she exclaimed. Cass picked her up and pulled her into her arms.

"Isn't she pretty, Rach?" she asked, pointing out the detail on the peacock's feathers. The blues and greens looked almost reflective as the peacock spread out her feathers and shook her head. "She's so majestic, and she's proud and independent. She's broken free of her cage to show that nothing can hold her back," Rachel nodded and Cassie was almost positive the little girl had no idea what she was going on about. But Shelby heard her, and thought it was one of the most beautiful concepts she had ever heard. Cassandra loved the peacock, not only for its beauty, but for what it stood for.

Softly and quickly, so no one could see and ruin Rachel's day by calling them out for it, Shelby made her way over to Cassandra and placed a passionate kiss on her lips. "I love you," she whispered.

Cassie hadn't realized that she had moved Shelby with her peacock speech, but she smiled all the same, her heart fluttering at Shelby's touch, as it always did. "I love you too," she said.

Rachel giggled and hid her face in Cassie's shoulder. "Ewww kissinggggg…." Her voice was muffled by Cassie's (well, technically Shelby's,) shirt. The two women laughed and carried Rachel to the next animal.

On the way to the next exhibit, the butterfly house, there was a vendor who was painting faces. Rachel lit up as she watched the artist paint one little girl's face as a monarch butterfly and a little boy's face as a tiger.

"Can I?" she asked Shelby, pointing at the vendor.

Shelby looked for the price and shrugged. "Of course, Rachel. Wait your turn, though, okay?"

Rachel shuffled her feet impatiently. "Okay."

"What're you going to get, Rach?" Cassie asked, coming up behind her as it was finally her turn.

Their little girl beamed from ear to ear. "Panda!"

"Why do I even ask?" Cassie laughed.

Rachel shrugged. "Didn't you know?"

This made the blonde laugh harder as she paid for Rachel to get her face painted. Shelby protested, "I could've gotten that—"

"No. I've already told you this is _my_ gift to Rachel."

Shelby didn't like this deal. It felt like Cassie was doing too much. She wrapped her arms around her Cassie and placed her head on her shoulder and watched as their little star got her face painted black and white like a panda.

Later on in the day, Rachel stated she was starving and the women figured lunch might not be a bad idea. She had eaten both pancakes earlier, but it had been a while since breakfast. They asked what she wanted and she looked at the food options on the menu as she sat on Cassie's shoulders. She pointe dup at the giant soft pretzel and Shelby ordered her one.

Shelby viewed the menu herself and sighed. "It all looks so…fattening."

Cass put Rachel back down onto the ground and smiled, poking Shelby's side as she opened the cooler she had been dragging along with them. Shelby was under the impression that the cooler only contained waters. She was wrong.

"I made us salads," Cassie explained, pulling Shelby's out for her. "I knew it wouldn't be likely you'd want anything from here."

Shelby's heart melted and she felt bad for not trusting Cassie earlier when she said she had everything covered. Her girlfriend really had thought of everything. "You didn't have to—"

"I know."

"I'll repay you. Somehow. Any way you want me to….later on…"

Cass noted her suggestive tone and reddened slightly. "I can't wait," she promised. "But you don't have to."

"But I want to," Shelby smiled, teasing her.

They found a picnic table to eat at and watched as Rachel devoured a pretzel with mustard. The table they sat at was right across from a little park where some of the kids were playing, and Rachel finished her lunch much faster than Cassie and Shelby did. "Can I go play?" she asked politely.

Shelby and Cassie took pride in the fact that they were raising such a well behaved (for the most part) little girl.

"Of course baby, but come here first," Shelby said, licking her thumb and cleaning the mustard off of Rachel's face. Rachel scrunched her face and tried to pull back.

"Mommyy…." She complained, trying to get out of Shelby's grip. "Noooo…."

Shelby laughed as her daughter struggled to break free. "Hold still," she grinned, finishing wiping her up. "Okay, go ahead. Have fun, be safe!" she called after her. Rachel was too excited to respond and she ran to the swing set (Rachel's personal favorite thing to do at the park was swing, because she liked going extra high and feeling like she was flying).

"She's growing up so fast," Cass stated, taking a drink out of her water bottle. "Remember how fussy she was when she was born?"

"Remember how fussy she was yesterday?" Shelby teased. It was often that Rachel threw little tantrums, just not today.

Cass laughed. "She's turning four. We're getting old, Shelbs."

Shelby rolled her eyes. "Her birthday's in December. We're not old…"

"We're not young," Cass corrected herself.

Shelby kissed her cheek. "You're still the young and wild and free Cassie I know and love to me, baby."

. . .

After Rachel had finished playing at the park and Shelby and Cass finished eating, they continued to walk. On their way to the sea turtles, they passed a carousel. Rachel was overjoyed.

"Can I, Mama?!" she asked, pointing at the horse painted purple. "Pleassseeeeee?"

Cassie laughed. "Yes, Rachel. How much?" she looked at the sign and saw that it was $5. She took out a $5 bill. Shelby widened her eyes.

"For one ride?!" she questioned.

Cassie shrugged. "You're paying me back," she teased. Shelby blushed and her heart raced at the idea.

As Rachel rode, Shelby took a video on her phone. It was something they often did—took videos and photos so that they could all watch when Rachel was older. Keep the memories they were making.

After which, they had seen the gorillas, the aardvarks, and the alpacas. They saw the dolphins (which Rachel had LOVED) and they saw the polar bears and the arctic foxes (Shelby's favorite, because of their beauty and strength and independence and how they chased after what they wanted, she explained). They showed Rachel the horses (she even got to ride a pretty black one), and every other animal Rachel could think of, even some she didn't know existed. They even got to feed the giraffes, and Rachel laughed as Cassie scrunched up her face and moved her mouth to mimic the giraffe as it snacked on the branch. The only thing left to see was the pandas.

"Pandas yet?" she asked, tired. They had been walking for a long time.

"They're coming up, Rach," Shelby said, softly stroking her daughters head as she held her in her arms. Their little star was exhausted.

Finally FINALLY they approached the pandas. Shelby moved Rachel so that she was sitting on her shoulders and the little girl shrieked excitedly when she spotted her favorite animal. It made Cassie feel like the best person ever to be able to make her little girl's day.

"PANDAS!" she pointed happily, clapping her hands together. All traces of exhaustion seemed to disappear. "Look, Mommy! Look Mama! Pandas!"

Shelby held tight to Rachel's legs so she wouldn't fall as they got closer to the pandas. Cassie took a picture of Rachel pointing, then took a picture of Rachel and Shelby standing in front of the pandas, Rachel's face still painted like a panda. This wasn't accomplished without difficulty, as Rachel kept turning her head around to look at the pandas. After about fifteen minutes in front of the pandas, Cassie noted that if they wanted to catch the train ride back to the front, they had to leave.

This did not make Rachel very happy.

"But Mamaaaaa…" she pouted out her lower lip and crossed her arms over her chest—the first sign of a tantrum.

"Rachel," Shelby said softly. "We've seen the pandas, now it's almost time to go home, okay? It's been a long day. You promised no fits, remember that?"

"But Mommyyy!" she whined. "Pandaaaaaassss!" she held tight to the railing in front of the panda habitat.

"Baby, please don't be difficult. We're going to get you a toy panda, remember? And then you can always see pandas!"

"I have pandas," she complained. "These are realll!" a tear slipped down her cheek and smudged her face painting.

Shelby crouched down to Rachel's level, as did Cassie. "Baby girl, we know you love pandas," Cassie said softly. "I promise you I'll take you to come see the pandas another time, okay? But it's time to go now. Please listen to Mama and Mommy, okay?"

Rachel sniffed. "Fine," she looked down at the ground and Cassie picked her up into her arms, holding her against her shoulder.

"She's tired," she said to Shelby. "You know she gets fussy when she's tired."

"Let's go, before we miss the train,"

Cassie paid for the three of them and they sat together in the seat, watching out the window as they passed by all the animals they had already seen. Rachel sat between her mommies, tired but excited to be able to see all the animals AGAIN as they were leaving. She pointed at all the animals and tried to remember all their names as Cass and Shelby both had an arm around her (she was sitting in between them), pleased that the day had gone so well. Shelby wasn't sure Cassie understood how much she appreciated how well she did with Rachel. Cassandra July was not a kid person. She wasn't really an anybody person. But she did SO very well with Rachel, and that meant the world to Shelby (and Rachel). Cassie really did make an excellent mother, despite her usual doubts that she wasn't very good at it, and her previous doubts that she wouldn't be good at it all, when they had discussed having Rachel to begin with.

Once they made it back to the front, Cassie went into the gift shop and bought Rachel a stuffed panda that was almost as big as she was. It was soft and fluffy and it was a panda, and it satisfied Rachel immensely. She hugged it tight to her as Shelby carried her back to the car, and clicked her into her seat.

As they drove home, Rachel fell asleep against her panda, holding it close to her. It was precious, and Shelby turned around to get a picture of it. After which, she took a minute to look at her beautiful girlfriend, who had done so much for their little star today, even if she wasn't a kid person. Cass had one hand on the wheel and the other hand set in between her seat and Shelby's. Shelby reached out and took her hand, warmly, excitedly. She loved Cassie's touch. It made her feel so alive. And she was so very in love with her Cassandra.

"Thank you, Cassie," she squeezed Cassie's hand.

Cass squeezed back. "Of course, Shelbs. Any time I can make Rachel's day, I'm going to do it."

"I know you're not a kid person…"

"No, but I'm a Rachel person," she smiled. "I love you two so very much."

"We love you too, Cassie."

Cass contemplated for a minute as she drove. She looked down for a split second at her hand linked to Shelby's. They didn't often hold hands in public when they had Rachel, not because they weren't proud of who they were but because they knew that some people would start something and they didn't want to expose Rachel to that so early on and they didn't want to ruin Rachel's day by trying to get themselves out of an argument with an antigay rioter. But she loved the feeling of Shelby's hand in hers.

"You know, you don't owe me anything," she said after a minute, even though the thought of Shelby paying her back excited her.

"I know. But you deserve it." Shelby said to her, tilting her head in that seductive way she knew drove Cassie crazy.

"If you say so."


	2. Mama Issues

**Loyal365: Hey! Could you do one where Rachel gets in trouble with Cassie about something, and Rachel lashes out and says you aren't my mama?**

**A/N: Rachel is four.**

**Thank you so very much for the prompt! Starting thursday i'll be taken camping against my will where i won't have internet access or phone signal, so i won't be able to update until monday at the soonest. But i'll have virtually nothing to do all weekend and will most likely write in my notebook the whole time, so if i get your prompts before late tomorrow, i can write them down and work on them over the weekend! If you have more while i'm gone, still send them to me and they'll go to my email and i'll write them when i return. Thank you so much and this one is for Loyal365. Tell me what you think!**

**With love always, hayleynymphadora**

* * *

**Mama Issues**

"MAMAAAAA," Rachel whined, pouting out her lower lip and crossing her arms over her chest. Cassie rubbed at her temples—a tantrum was coming on.

"Rachel, I told you no, now drop it." She said sternly. Why the little girl could never take no for an answer would forever be a mystery to her.

"But WHY NOT?!" Rachel stomped her foot.

"Because you have an attitude, Mama is busy with work, Mommy is AT work, and I said not right now. Maybe later on, okay?" Cass turned from her computer, where she was putting in student grades and writing up lesson plans, and looked at her four year old daughter. She already had an enormous headache and wasn't sure she had the patience to listen to a tantrum right now.

"THAT'S NOT FAIR,"

"Stop yelling," Cass said in a tone of warning. She was ignored.

"I WANT TO GO PLAY WITH SANTANA," Rachel complained. "She's my best friend!"

Cass tilted her head back and let out a breath, staring down at her daughter, who was getting on her last nerve. It wasn't that she said Rachel could never go play at Santana's house ever again, she just said not this particular minute of this particular day. The young girl was way too overdramatic for her own good.

"I know this, baby, but you can't right now, because Mama is busy. Maybe once Mama has this done, she can take you over to Santana's house, okay?" she tried to keep her own temper. Cassandra July was not the most patient of people, (and neither really was Shelby, which was probably where Rachel got HER impatience, but that was beside the point).

"But I don't WANT to wait till later! I want to play with her NOW!"

Cass refrained from letting out a frustrated growl. Rachel was never watching Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory EVER again; she didn't care how many times Shelby protested it was a classic. If Rachel was going to take a page out of Veruca Salt's book, she simply was not going to watch it.

"Rachel Barbra," Cassandra pronounced her name slowly. "Go to your room, now. You're done."

Rachel stomped her feet. "NO!"

Cassandra stood. "Rachel Barbra Corcoran, you know your mother and I don't tolerate this behavior. This is very wrong of you. You need to drop your attitude, go to your room and calm down. I'll take you to Santana's house later on."

"No, NOW!"

"RACHEL. GO." She would not put up with this. Her four year old would not tell her what to do. They had taught her better than this.

"UGH!" Rachel stomped her foot again as tears fell down her face. "NO! I DON'T HAVE TO LISTEN TO YOU!" Rachel yelled, furious.

Cassandra froze in her tracks. What did her Rachel just say to her? Her heart just shattered but she kept her composure. "Yes, you do. Rachel, go to your room." She said calmly.

"NO! YOU'RE NOT MY MAMA!" Rachel cried and ran away from Cassandra.

For a minute, Cassandra didn't know how to breathe. She WAS Rachel's Mama. She had always been Rachel's Mama. True, she wasn't biologically. Shelby was Rachel's true biological mother, but Cassie was still Rachel's Mama…. Right? As her heart broke and she watched the only little girl she'd ever actually been able to stand storm away from her and yell that she wasn't her mom, Cassandra had to remind herself that Rachel was just upset. That she didn't mean it….did she?

She called Shelby while she let Rachel blow off her steam and throw a fit in the background.

Shelby answered on the second ring. "Hi, baby, is everything okay?"

"Rachel just told me I'm not her Mama." Cass couldn't help the tears stinging at the back of her eyes. It had been an insecurity of hers ever since Rachel had been born and she expected the young girl to figure it out someday, but hadn't expected it to be someday so soon, and over something so small.

"Oh, Cassie," Shelby said softly. "She's just upset over something. She'll get over it. You are her Mama. She loves you."

"But you're her mother."

"But _we_ are her moms. She's not MY daughter, she's OUR daughter. I'm sorry I have to go now, but just trust me okay? We'll talk about this later?"

"Okay. I love you."

"I love you too, sweetheart. And so does Rachel."

Once she got off the phone with Shelby, Cass made her way out of her office and into the living room, finding a kicking and screaming Rachel on the floor, throwing a huge fit over nothing. She walked over to Rachel and picked her up, even though she was squirming and kicking and crying.

"Rachel," she tried calmly.

Rachel kicked harder against Cassie's stomach and Cass actually let out a laugh. "Sweetheart, have you seen my abs? You're not hurting me one bit. You're only exhausting yourself, now stop."

Rachel kicked slightly less hard.

"Do you want to see Santana at all today?" Cassandra threatened. Rachel stopped almost immediately and Cass felt bad for having to threaten her and restrict her from seeing her best friend, but if it would get her to stop… "Now. Whether you like it or not, I am your Mama. You DO have to listen to me. You DO have to do what I say. I don't do what I do to upset you, I do everything I do because I love you. Because I love you, I can't let you get away with this kind of behavior. If you want to see Santana you will go to your room until I take you over there and you will be good and you will be silent. Do you understand what I'm saying to you? Nod so I know that you understand."

Rachel nodded and wiped her tears. Cassie wiped up her tears for her.

"I love you very much, Rachel, and it hurt me when you said I wasn't your Mama."

"I'm sorry, Mama," she said softly.

"It's okay, baby," Cassie kissed the top of her head. "No more tantrums, okay?"

Rachel nodded. And Cassie said, "Go play in your room until I take you to Santana's, okay?"

"Okay," she did as she was told and Cassandra thought it was probably the best thing that had happened all day. Finally, Rachel was doing what she was told. Finally, she wasn't throwing a tantrum,

And maybe she really did think that Cassie really was her Mama. Hopefully.


	3. Live on Broadway

**To answer a guest question: Yes, these oneshots will all be set in this AU, with Cassie and Shelby as little Rachel's mothers and how they raise her and maybe even some with Cassie and Shelby by themselves. **

**Prompt from my Baby: Rachel's first Broadway show.**

**Here you go, baby. I hope you like it! Thank you so much for the prompt. If there are any more, let me know!**

**A/N: Flash forward a couple years—Rachel is now 6. I can always go back for future prompts. These will sort of be just all over the place I guess. xD**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Cats or Glee. If I owned Glee, things would be run a lot differently. xD and season 6 would NOT be the final season.**

**with love always, hayleynymphadora**

* * *

**Live on Broadway**

"Rachel, sweetheart, do you have a dress picked out?" Shelby called down the hallway from her bedroom as she looked for one to put on herself. She and Cassandra were taking Rachel to see her first live Broadway show—_Cats._ The theatre was doing a revival of it.

Rachel walked into her mothers' bedroom, a hand on her hip as she said matter-of-factly, "I've had an outfit picked out for 3 days, Mom." And started to walk away. Rachel usually called Shelby "Mommy" and not "Mom". When it was switched, it meant Rachel was in a mood or being testy.

"The attitude is not appreciated, Rach," Shelby said with a tone of warning. As she threw another dejected dress onto the bed, she caught Rachel rolling her eyes up at the ceiling. Shelby caught Rachel's arm before she could walk away and get away with the gesture. "I don't think so, missy. Roll your eyes at me again and you won't be seeing a Broadway show until you're 18, is that understood?"

"Yes, Mommy." Rachel lost her attitude immediately. Or, at least, _acted_ like she didn't have one. She HAD to see Broadway, and her mother was not going to stop her.

The thing about Shelby and Rachel was that they were so alike that they often seriously clashed. Especially when they were BOTH in a mood.

Shelby let go of Rachel's arm. "Go get dressed."

Grumpily, Rachel did as she was told. In an irritated fashion, Shelby threw another dress onto the bed. What were you supposed to wear to _Cats_? _CATS!_ Andrew Lloyd Webber had never been her absolute favorite anyways. She preferred Sondheim, and Schwartz. _Cats_ was more like Cassandra's cup of tea. She used a lot of the dance routines in her classes. Speaking of Cassandra, _she_ could help with the outfit thing. Where the hell was Cassandra?!

"Cassie!" Shelby yelled. "I need you! Now! Please!" she added the "please" as an afterthought for good measure.

Cass sashayed down the hallway and towards their bedroom. She leaned against the door frame and half-whispered, "Don't be so forward, Shelbs, we have a conscious 6 year old in the house." And gave her a seductive wink.

After smacking Cass on the arm, Shelby said, "Come here, you, I need your help."

"So demanding,"

"Help me find a dress," Shelby rolled her eyes. Cass was better with fashion, too.

Cassandra put her hands together in contemplation—she wasn't yet dressed herself. She looked at Shelby, then at the closet, then at the dresses on the bed. Finally, she spoke,

"Personally, I think you look better with the dress off."

With a blush, Shelby looked at Cassandra condescendingly. "And you said _I_ was the one being forward."

Cass smiled and bumped hips with Shelby. "Quit worrying so much. Tonight will go great, okay?" she fumbled through the pile on the bed and pulled out a nice, sleek black dress. It was one she absolutely adored on Shelby that hugged her curves in all of the _very_ best places. She handed it to Shelbs and kissed her softly. "You're so OCD," she said with a small smile.

"I know, I know," Shelby mumbled. Cass went to leave the room and help Rachel and Shelby called out after her, "I love you!"

"I love you too."

Meanwhile, in her bedroom, Rachel was freaking out.

_She gets it from Shelby, of course…_ Cass shook her head as she stood in the 6-year-old's doorway and watched her struggle to pull a pair of tights on. "Need some help, kiddo?"

"No, I've got it!" Rachel said, hopping on one foot to get the tights on over her other foot. She slipped and fell back onto her bed.

_Stubborn as Shelby is too…_

"Come here, Rach," Cass laughed softly.

"No! I've got it!"

"It's okay to admit that you need help sometimes. Even your mother just asked for help—"

"I don't need help!" she stood to put the tights back on again and fell over once more. Cassandra watched her struggle and tried not to laugh. She then noticed that her daughter's hands were shaking as she tried to get the tights on, thus was the cause of her falter. Finally, Rachel pouted and crossed her arms over her chest. "I need help." She mumbled.

With a small sympathetic smile, Cass walked towards Rachel's bed and helped her get the other foot on before helping her pull them up. "Thanks," Rachel muttered. Cass kissed the top of Rachel's head.

"Of course, Rachie. Where's your dress?"

Rachel reached over and picked up the dress she had picked out. It was purple—the top was sparkly, and the bottom was darker and poofed out with tulle. To separate the top and the bottom, there was a satin purple ribbon and a flower off to the side of it. It was a new dress that Shelby had bought Rachel for this occasion.

Carefully, Cassie undid the ribbon and unzipped it, helping Rachel inside it. Afterwards, she zipped it and tied it and smoothed down the front for her. "There. All better?" Rachel nodded. "Yep!"

"Okay. I have to go get myself dressed now and I still don't know what I'm wearing. You want to wait for Mommy so she can do your makeup?"

Rachel nodded then said, "Can I come help you?"

"Sure," they walked to Cass and Shelby's bedroom. Shelby was in their bathroom, putting on her makeup.

Rach jumped up onto Cassie and Shelby's bed and watched as Cass pulled some dress options out of their closet. The young little six year old stared down at the options, her eyes wide. She didn't know her mommies owned such pretty dresses—they never dressed up at home, and Rachel never got to go with them to the big Broadway parties and what-not. Rachel looked up at a deep blue dress that was hanging in the closet and smiled. It was perfect. She pointed to it.

"The blue one," she said.

Cass turned her attention to it and grimaced, "Sweetheart, that's Mommy's dress, not mine,"

Rachel shrugged. "So? You wear her clothes all the time anyways."

"She wears mine too!" Cass defended herself.

Hearing the debate, Shelby walked out of the bathroom, putting an earring through her left ear. "What are we going on about?" she asked.

"Your daughter wants me to wear your navy blue dress, and I told her it was yours."

The two older women exchanged a look. Cass never dared touch that dress because of its importance to Shelby. It was the dress she wore when she met Barbra Streisand and sang for her. It was her Barbra Streisand dress. It was also her Tony Award dress. This was a special dress—one that no one in the family was to touch except for Shelby (and occasionally Cassie, when she's helping her get it off…). Shelby gave her a warm smile, "You can wear that dress, baby,"

Cassie's eyes widened. "Are—are you sure? I know that dress is important to you—"

Shelby kissed her cheek. "So are you. Wear the dress. It'll look good on you."

"…Okay." Cass wasn't entirely sure when this switch of moods happened, but she had to admit she liked it. She stripped and Shelby helped her into the dress before zipping it for her.

Rachel gaped at it. "You look really pretty, Mama!" she said.

"You look gorgeous," Shelby assured her. "As always."

"You've had a sudden change of character tonight," Cassie couldn't help it—she had to point it out.

Shelby gave Cassie a squeeze on her hips with her hands. "We're going to have fun tonight, right? It's Rachel's first show."

"Right."

The next hour after that (after Cassie did her makeup and finished getting herself ready) they worked on getting Rachel ready the rest of the way. Cass did her hair and Shelby did her make up. Rachel was used to having to sit still for this process, even if she didn't particularly like it. But she had to do it for performances and dance recitals and singing competitions and she had gotten good at not blinking while Shelby did her makeup and not squirming when Cass pulled her hair back.

"I get to wear makeup tonight?" she asked excitedly as they sat her up on the counter.

"Only for tonight. You know it's only for special occasions. Performances, shows, and recitals." Shelby reminded her as she applied mascara to the young girl's eyelashes.

"And competitions?" Rachel wondered as Cass put her hair in curls.

"And competitions," Shelby agreed. She did a thing with eyeliner to make Rachel's eyes look somehow catlike. Cassandra had never figured out how Shelby learned to be so artistic with eye makeup but it was always something she admired.

Once hair and makeup was done and everyone was ready, they took a taxi to the theatre. Rachel buzzed in her seat with excitement, bouncing her legs up and down. Her excitement made Shelby smile nervously. "I'm glad you're happy, Rach, but you need to calm down, baby. You can't be so hyper in the theatre."

"I know, Mommy," Rachel said, somewhat impatiently. "That's why I'm getting out my energy NOW!"

Cass put her hand over her mouth to cover a laugh she knew Shelby would hit her for. "You silly girl," she said. Rachel just grinned.

As they made it to the theatre, they exited the taxi and went into the building. Rachel's anticipation grew and both mothers had to hold on to her from the back, each took a shoulder. Cass and Shelby walked next to each other, practically up against each other, holding each other close, with Rachel walking in front of them. They had tickets for front row seats, which meant they'd be walking for a bit. Shelby and Cassie loved going out to the theatre—and they always felt like they could be more open about their relationship there. Broadway always felt so much more accepting. Cassie reached over and lightly smacked Shelby's ass. Shelby jumped slightly and Cassie smiled.

"Guess who's performing tonight?" she said.

Shelby reached her arm around and squeezed Cassie's hip. "Who?" Rachel squirmed in Shelby and Cassie's grip and she leaned forward and told her to please walk right.

"Dylan," Cassandra smiled proudly. Shelby raised an impressed eyebrow.

"Dylan?" She repeated. "That's great, who—"

"He's playing Mistoffelees." Cass was practically beaming. Dylan Taylor was a favorite student of hers. He had so much potential, he was quick to learn, and he had spunk. He was the kind of kid that Cassandra admired—he knew just when to listen to her and when to back talk her and he quickly became her little protégé. And now here he was, starring as Mistoffelees in the revival of _Cats_—It was one of his dream roles, and admittedly, the dance solo that he gets as this character was one of his midterms once.

"That's great, Cass." Shelby smiled warmly. She had met Dylan a couple of times and thought he was a nice kid.

"I was thinking of going backstage after the show to say hi to him…you think Rach would be into that?" she whispered so Rachel wouldn't hear and get excited if Shelby said no.

"I think she would jump for joy and you'd be her favorite mother." Shelby said, a touch of bitterness.

"Can I make it up to you later? Make you feel like _my_ favorite?" Cassie whispered even lower.

Shelby reddened as they found their seats and sat Rachel in between them. She reached across Rach and whispered back to Cass, "I think that could probably be arranged."

Cassandra smirked.

It was five minutes until show and Rachel was getting antsy. She had seen _Cats _about a million times at home on the TV (because Cassandra had to get a copy for teaching purposes and Rachel fell in love with it), but she was so ready to see it live. Her favorite cat, coincidentally, was Mistoffelees. She liked that he was magical.

"When does it start?" Rachel whined to Shelby.

"Soon, baby,"

"How SOON is soon?" she asked. Just as she did the lights started to dim and Rachel practically squealed, taking Shelby's hand excitedly. Shelby's heart melted at her touch. She was happy that they could make their daughter so happy.

The cats started to go through the audience and onto the stage. Dylan, as Mistoffelees, spotted Cassandra in the front row, and jubilantly (though still in character), ran up to them and put his "paw" out to Rachel, cuddling her arm. Rachel almost shrieked with happiness. Dylan gave a soft unnoticeable-to-others wink to Cassie and moved to his position on the stage.

As the show went on, Cass and Shelbs would look over and see their daughter mouthing the words to all of the songs and they thought to themselves, _This is it. We're raising a Broadway legend. Our little star is going to win Tony Awards and she's going to be a name for the history books. _

By the time it was Mister Mistoffelees's turn to dance, Rachel was practically standing up—her excitement wouldn't let her sit still. Cassandra beamed as she saw Rachel's enthusiasm, then she watched in anticipation for Dylan's part. He was extraordinary. It made her so proud.

Once the show was over and after a very long standing ovation that Rachel practically started on her own, Cass tapped Rachel's shoulder and whispered into her ear, "Do you wanna go meet Mister Mistoffelees?"

Rachel spun around with elation and wide brown eyes, "Oh, can we?!"

"I happen to know him personally," Cassandra smiled. "Do you remember Dylan?"

Rachel shook her head and Cassandra figured she was probably too young to remember him. "Well let's go meet him, shall we?" she slipped one hand into Rachel's and Shelby took her others and they worked their way towards backstage but Dylan met them halfway, hoping to see them as well.

"Miss July," he gave her a hug and she hugged him back, warmly, while Rachel stayed back with Shelby.

"You can call me Cassandra now, Dylan," she laughed. "You were amazing. I'm so proud of you—look at you!"

He laughed. "Thank you so much. I had a blast."

"You could tell. You're a very talented performer," Shelby offered.

"Thanks, Shelby," he reached out to hug her too and she obliged.

Meanwhile, Rachel stared up at him, awestruck. "You're magical!" she said, jumping up and down.

"That's right, sweetheart," he said with a smile. Rachel's mega-watt grin seemed to light up the entire theatre, and Dylan thought to himself that she could probably soften the hardest of hearts with that kind of a delighted expression. He had a fake rose up his sleeve still and he reached behind her before saying, "What's this?" and pulled out the rose before handing it to her.

Her eyes got bigger, if that were possible. "Woah!" she exclaimed, taking the rose. "Thank you!"

"You're very welcome," he bowed to her and she bowed back.

Cass watched the exchange with a huge smile on her face. She glanced over at Shelby who was recording and taking pictures. They were happy that Rachel's first show had gone so well.

Once they were back home and changed into pj's and getting ready to relax for a bit, Cass and Shelby went to Rachel's room to ask if she wanted ice cream for a dessert, for being such a good audience member and being so sophisticated even throughout her excitement. As they entered her doorway, they spotted her, dancing around her room. She was wearing black leggings and a black sparkly shirt with a fake white bow tie. She had on a headband with cat ears and was holding her rose while doing splits and jumping around and singing,

"_Oh, well, I never was there ever, a cat so clever as magical Mister Mistoffelees…._

_Oh, well, I never was there ever, a cat so clever as magical Mister Mistoffelees…"_


	4. Mommy, I'm Scared

**Prompt from guest reviewer: Can we have a night alone with Rachel and Shelby? Rachel has a nightmare and goes to her mommy?**

**A/N: Rachel is 5**

**We sure can! How is this? Tell me what you think, and thank you so much for the prompt. If you guys/gals have any others, let me know! I'm all out of prompts for this series for now! **

**With love always, hayleynymphadora**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Sweeney Todd, which is where the lyrics to "Not While I'm Around" come from. **

* * *

**Mommy, I'm Scared**

It was around midnight in the Corcoran household. Rachel had been put to bed a long time ago, and Cassandra was out for the night—she and Shelby had been invited to the cast party of one of Cassandra's dance students. Shelby, however, had a lot of lessons to write and work to do for the online music classes she taught, so told Cassie to go out and said that she would stay home with Rachel. Cross legged on the couch, Shelby sat with her laptop resting on her knees. She read through a music history paper sent in by one of her lazier students and sighed. She didn't have the energy to read his work right now. She flicked over to a different task and as she did, saw a little toes sticking out from behind the corner of the wall. She rubbed her eyes and did a double take but no, they were still there.

That was when she heard the sniffling.

"Rachel?" she said softly. "Sweetheart, are you okay?"

Rachel ran out from behind the corner of the wall and barreled over towards Shelby so quickly that Shelby hardly had the time to close her laptop and shove it to the side. Rachel jumped into her lap and held on to her tightly.

"Don't let it get me, don't let it get me, don't let it get me, Mommy, I'm scared," she squealed, tears falling down her face.

Shelby's heart cracked as she heard her little daughter's desperate pleas. She must have had a really bad dream…

"Don't let what get you, baby?" she asked of her five year old.

"The hands under my bed," the little girl shrieked back.

"Shhh, shh, baby, there's nothing under your bed. You've had a nightmare, sweetheart, nothing's going to hurt you," she rocked her little girl in her lap and stroked her hair softly. "It's okay, baby girl," she said soothingly. "You're okay,"

"Don't make me go back in there," Rachel cried. "Can I sleep with you tonight?" she begged.

"Of course, baby girl," Shelby said as Rachel wrapped her legs tightly around her Mommy's waist. "Tell me about these hands, maybe I can make them go away."

Rachel's lower lip quivered as she spoke, pulling away from her mother's grip enough so that she could look Shelby in the eyes. "They were long and grey and they were reaching up towards me trying to pull me under but I jumped out and ran to you and wouldn't let them," she sniffed.

"That sounds scary," Shelby agreed. "But baby girl, it wasn't real. It was just your imagination. Nothing can hurt you."

Rachel sniffed again and Shelby held her like a cradle, rocking her back and forth, back and forth. She started to sing to her little girl, to try to calm her once more.

"_Nothing's gonna harm you, not while I'm around,_

_Nothing's gonna harm you, darling, not while I'm around,_

_Demons will charm you with a smile, for a while, but in time,_

_Nothing can harm you, not while I'm around._

_No one's gonna hurt you, no one's gonna dare,_

_Others can desert you, not to worry, whistle I'll be there,_

_Demons are prowling everywhere, nowadays,_

_I'll send them howling, I don't care, I've got ways._

_Nothing's gonna harm you, not while I'm around,_

_Nothing's gonna harm you, darling, not while I'm around,_

_Demons will charm you with a smile, for a while, but in time,_

_Nothing's gonna harm you, not while I'm around…"_

She finished the lullaby softly, knowing she had mixed around a few of the lyrics but sure that Rachel wouldn't notice or mind. The young little Corcoran's eyes had fluttered shut halfway through anyways. Shelby continued to rock her back and forth, her little star, her angel. It broke her heart to know that she was having nightmares, and she hoped that she had helped just now—that she had made them go away.

Deciding that work could wait if it meant comforting Rachel, she decided to take them both up to bed. She lay Rachel down in her bed and covered her up before crawling in after her. Even asleep, Rachel cuddled up to her immediately. Shelby kissed the top of her head and held her as she slept.

"I've got you, Rachel. I've got you,"


	5. Camping

**ComplexStatus: Since you're going camping, how about a chapter where Cassie takes Rachel to go camping? It can be in their living room or in the woods.**

**A/N: I chose to do it in the living room. The woods would definitely be interesting but I don't see Cassie or Shelby going camping in the woods even if they were paid. xD Plus, since I have to go camping in the woods and can't stand that sort of torture, I'm not going to subject these poor people to the same fate. xD **

**Oh also, Rachel will be 5. xD**

**Little backstory about me: I grew up in a city, (not like Chicago or New York, but a city) and then was moved five years ago to the middle of nowhere. I HATE the middle of nowhere, all out in the country, i CAN'T WAIT to move to New York in three years, and i HATE camping. I'm being taken against my will. :/ it will not be fun.**

**In any case, I, much like Cassie, would much rather take camping in the living room over camping outdoors.**

**xD now that you've read part of my life story... lol enjoy. Thank you so much for the prompt! **

**If you have more, I will be able to check my email until sometime tomorrow morning, so i might still be able to get them and work on them while i'm gone.**

**with love always, hayleynymphadora**

**p.s this will be my last update until sunday (at the earliest) . i'll miss you all!**

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**Camping**

Cassandra was sitting in the living room of the apartment she shared with her lover Shelby and their daughter Rachel. She was actually lying on the couch, watching some dance documentary on the history of the waltz. Things like this usually bored Shelby to tears—good thing Shelby wasn't home tonight. She was out of town for the night, actually, at some conference for online professors. It was a conference that Cassandra found pathetic, but she agreed Shelby could go, as long as she made up for the missing time later.

Rachel was in her bedroom, blasting music from The Lion King and dancing around in circles.

While her program went on commercial, Cass went to the kitchen to get some iced tea. Rachel ran out into the living room and saw a commercial for granola bars. The people in the commercial were camping and hiking and canoeing and always had a granola bar in case they got hungry in the wilderness. The concept spiked little Rachel's interest.

"Mama!" She jumped excitedly and ran into the kitchen. "Mama," she crashed into Cassandra's legs and Cassie laughed, setting her tea down on the counter so it wouldn't spill.

"How about we don't run in the house, Rach?" she said, picking up her little girl and kissing her cheek before setting her back down on the floor.

"Mama, can we go camping?" the young Corcoran asked, innocently batting her eyes.

Cassandra gave her young daughter an odd look. She was almost 100% positive neither she nor Shelby had ever mentioned the word "camping" in front of Rachel, because neither woman was really the outdoorsy-camping-person type, so she was curious as to where Rach had picked the idea up.

"Where'd you hear that word, baby girl?" she wondered, taking her tea out the living room and sitting back down on the couch. Rachel got on her lap and pointed to the TV. "Of course you did," Cassandra shook her head and laughed. "Rach, we can't go camping in the wilderness, we'd end up being eaten by a bear." That probably wasn't actually very likely, but Cassandra figured that with her luck, it was a serious possibility.

Rachel's eyes widened. "Wilderness has bears?" she asked nervously. This made Cass laugh out loud. Maybe raising Rachel in the city was a good idea, maybe it wasn't. Maybe they needed to teach her about the outside world a bit more. Just not by camping. The mere idea of sleeping in a tent and being eaten by mosquitos and eating only what you could cook over a fire made Cassandra shiver in disgust. She loved her Rachel, but she just couldn't do it.

"Yes, Rach, wilderness has bears."

She watched as the little five year old pouted out her lower lip. "Okay. Well then I guess we're not going camping, huh?"

"Not tonight, panda-boo. I'm sorry."

"Okay," she watched the waltz program with Cassie while thunder cracked outside and the windows rattled from the storm that had been going on. It gave Cass nervous butterflies to know that Shelby was out on her own while this storm was going on, and she hoped it wasn't happening while Shelby was out. It seemed to be a particularly nasty storm as it was, and even the smallest of storms scared Shelby.

Rachel was enchanted by the dancers on the television, which made Cassandra a proud parent indeed. They continued to watch, but a flash of lightning struck and the power went out, then flicked back on, slowly. Rachel screamed and buried her face into Cassie's chest, holding on to her tightly. Cassie had jumped, too, and held on to Rachel, stroking her back softly. "It's okay, baby. The power went out for a minute but we're okay. The generator switched on."

For once in her life, Cassandra was thankful of Shelby's fear of storms and her insistence to invest in a $10,000 generator.

"Mama, I'm scared," Rachel admitted softly, shaking in Cassie's arms. It reminded Cassandra so much of Shelby and Shelby's fear of storms that she wanted to cry. She knew she had to stay strong for Rachel, even if she was also admittedly very frightened. The storm must be pretty bad, and she hoped to god that Shelby was okay.

But the quick lack of power and the danger of the storm gave Cassie an idea.

"It'll be alright, Rach. I have an idea, okay? Do you want to go camping in the living room?" she whispered in her little girl's ear.

Rachel wiped up a tear and sniffed, pulling her head slowly away from Cassandra's chest as she said, her voice quiet like a mouse, "We can do that?"

Cassie nodded. "Sure. We can make a tent out of blankets and furniture and we can have our own little campout. How's that sound?"

Rach nodded her head viciously.

"I have to put you down, okay? Can you walk on your own, do you think?" Cass asked her.

Rach nodded again, a little more slowly, and took Cassandra's hand. Together they walked to Cassie and Shelby's room and took all the pillows and the comforter off of the bed, taking them to the living room and tossing them into a pile on the floor. Cass switched off the TV. They could pay for a generator, fine, but they didn't need to pay extra just to keep a TV going since they were ignoring it at this point anyways. They went back to Shelby and Cassie's room and got into their closet, finding spare blankets in the back.

After which, they went into Rachel's room and stripped her bed of pillows and blankets and stuffed animals and carried them into the living room, tossing them into a pile on the floor.

Cassie clapped her hands together and looked at her daughter. "Okay, Rach, now your job is to separate the pillows from the blankets and pull them over there, okay?" she pointed to the corner of the room and Rachel nodded.

As Rachel did this, Cassandra put the smaller blankets on the living room floor, making what would serve as the bottom of their "tent". Then she pulled the couch up to the edge of the blankets, and all of the chairs in the room up to the other edges, making a sort of outer wall.

"How many more blankets do we have, Rach?" she asked her little five year old, who was dragging the last pillow off to the side. "Think we have enough to make a barricade?"

"Like in Les Mis?" Rachel asked.

Cassandra wasn't aware that Shelby was letting her watch Les Mis, but she was proud that she got the reference, in any case. "Um…sure?"

"We have _some_ left," Rachel said.

"Okay, well leave the comforter, and you wanna help me stack these blankets in between the chairs and the couch? It'll sorta make a wall…"

So they set to doing so, successfully making the "Les Mis barricade". Cassie held out her hand,

"That's my girl!" and Rachel high fived her.

"Okay, now we have to make the roof." So they spread out the comforter on top of everything and tucked it into the crevices. They left one of the spaces between the chairs open, to serve as a door. They had one blanket left when they were done, which was good, because they hadn't actually thought of one to use while they slept.

Rachel and Cassie set to lining the inside with pillows and all of Rachel's stuffed animals and then exited their tent to look at their masterpiece.

"Viola!" Cassie showcased the tent with her arms. "We have a tent!"

"Yayy!" Rachel jumped up and down and clapped. "We're camping!"

Cassie let out a yawn, and covered it with her hand. "Yep!" she took out her phone to take a picture and caught the time—it was 10:30, and Rachel should really be sleeping but she knew Rachel wasn't going to sleep in this storm—not when the thunder kept cracking like it was.

She took a picture of their tent inside and out and sent them to Shelby, captioning,

"_A tent to keep us safe. Rach wanted to go camping. Generator kicked on. Sleeping in the living room. We hope you're safe and we love you very very much! Xoxo_"

Since Rachel was already awake and she wanted to go camping, by god, Cassie was going to give her the whole experience. She walked into the kitchen and hopped up onto the counter to reach the top cupboard. She noticed Rachel walking in behind her and turned around to say, "Don't do this, okay? We're not going to tell mommy that mama was on the counter, alright?" Shelby was the one who always reached things from the top cupboard (because she was the tallest) and Cass did not want to get into trouble with her for teaching their daughter how to climb kitchenware.

"Okay," Rachel giggled behind her hands and Cassie found what she was looking for. She grabbed a bag of marsh mellows and skewers and hopped down, (setting the skewers down first so she didn't stab someone's eye out—she might be more irresponsible than Shelby, but she wasn't COMPLETELY irresponsible…).

"Wanna roast marshmellows?" Cassie asked her with a grin.

Rachel clapped her hands together. "Yes!" she exclaimed.

"Sweet," Cassie told Rachel to stand back and turned on the gas stove. She put a marshmellow on one of the sticks and handed it to Rachel. "Stay back so you don't get burned, okay? Be careful. You think you got it or you want me to do it?"

"Lemme try!" Rachel begged.

"Okay," Cassie stood close to her, ready to blow it out if it caught on fire. It did. Almost immediately. Rachel's eyes widened and Cassie laughed.

"Let me see it, carefully." She took it from Rach before the little girl could swing it around or drop it out of fear and blew it out. Rachel stuck out her lower lip.

"It burnt," she whined.

"It's okay, Rach. I'll eat this one," Cassie slowly took the blackened marshmellow off the stick and blew on it. "Unless you want it?"

Rachel shook her head and scrunched her nose then laughed as Cassie tried to eat it without getting her face all sticky. "You're silly, Mama."

"No, YOU are," Cassie laughed after swallowing the marshmellow. "Want me to make yours nice and brown and perfect?"

Rachel nodded and watched as her mama roasted (an almost perfect) marshmellow for her. "It's hot," she warned, pulling it off the stick and handing it to Rachel. Rachel did not try so hard to not get her face sticky. With a laugh and her daughter's marshmellow covered face, Cass turned the grill off and set their supplies off to the side before getting out her phone and holding it out in front of her.

"Want to take a picture for mommy?" she asked.

"Yes! She'll think we're silly," Rachel giggled. "And you have marshmellow on your face, mama," she pointed to the side of Cassie's mouth.

Cassie tried to lick it off and failed. "She KNOWS we're silly," she held the screen out in front of her and Rach and they made funny faces as she took the picture. "And you have marshmellow all over YOUR face,"

This made Rachel giggle again and after Cass sent the picture she told her daughter they'd better head to the bathroom and wash up in the sink.

By the time their marshmellow adventure was over, it was 11:30 and time for dancers and little stars to sleep. Cassie told Rachel to crawl into the tent and she crawled in behind her. Her phone went off as she was tucking Rachel in. She checked the message,

_You two are adorable. But why are you feeding our daughter sugar at 11 at night? More importantly, why is our daughter awake at 11 at night?_

Another clap of thunder hit and Rachel whined and looked up at Cassie with frightened eyes. Their camping adventure had kept her mind busy and focused on things besides the storm but now that they were quiet and in the tent it was much more noticeable. "It's okay, sweetheart," Cassie soothed Rachel and stroked her hair before continuing to read the text.

_I am safe though admittedly scared. It's storming here, too. I miss you both so much. And love you like crazy 33_

Cassie realized as she went to answer back that she left the lamp outside the tent on. Before she went to turn it off, she switched her phone to video and directed it towards Rachel and hit record. "Say goodnight to Mommy, blow her a kiss," she said.

"Goodnight, Mommy!" Rachel said, blowing the phone a kiss. "Mwah. I love you!"

Cass stopped the recording and sent it to Shelby then looked at Rach. "I'm going to the bathroom, okay? I'll be right back," she kissed her daughter's forehead and left the tent, off towards the bathroom. Once she was in there, she sat up on the counter in front of the mirror and hit record on her phone.

"Hey, Shelbs. I love you so very very much. It's going to be okay, I promise. You're safe. I know I'm not there to protect you this time and I'm sorry. But I love you very much and you are okay. You are safe. The thunder is just noise. The lightning can't hurt you when you're inside. You are okay." She blew the screen a kiss. "Text me until you fall asleep, okay? I'll keep your mind off of the storm. I love you."

She sent that video to Shelby as well and then left the bathroom and made it back into the living room. She shut the lamp light off and used her phone as a light as she crawled into the tent with Rachel and wrapped herself up in the blanket they were sharing. She put her phone on silent and watched as Rachel pulled her mama close and her eyes slowly fluttered shut. Cassie kissed the top of her head. "Goodnight, love. I hope you liked your camping trip,"

"I did, mama." Rachel whispered before drifting into unconsciousness.

Shelby texted Cass.

_You never answered why my daughter is eating sugar at 11 at night and why she's not asleep._

**The storm scared her, she wanted a camping trip, so I built her a tent and gave her marshmellows. Is it a crime to be a cool mom?**

_You're ALWAYS the cool mom. It's not fair._

**She loves us both equally, Shelby. We're both the cool mom.**

_You can say that because you're the cool mom._

Cassie rolled her eyes and laughed.

**Whatever. ;)**

_Is she sleeping yet?_

**Yeah, she's out. The thunder's been making her jump though.**

_I know the feeling._

**Are you okay?**

_I wish I was home in that tent with you. _

**You'll be home soon, baby. Do you want me to leave the tent up so we can stay in it tomorrow night?**

From her big empty bed in her hotel room, Shelby laughed.

_No, that's fine. I'm sleepy._

**Then sleep, love.**

_I'm scared._

**You have nothing to be afraid of.**

_Promise?_

**I promise. I love you. 33**

_I love you too._

**Promise me we'll never go camping in the woods?**

_You're so random._

**Not really. Rachel wanted to go camping in the woods. I told her there were bears and we'd be eaten.**

Shelby rolled her eyes at her lover's fear of the wilderness.

_The poor girl's never going to make it out of the city._

**Good thing she doesn't want to. She agreed with me about the bears.**

_I miss you._

Shelby stared at the huge empty space in the bed next to her; the side that would be Cassie's side.

_Maybe we should build our own tent fort when I get home. Maybe that was a good idea._

Cassie grinned.

**Maybe.**


	6. Fireworks

**Hello my lovelies I have returned to you! I've missed you all so much! and i've missed writing! (Well, i've been writing but...yeah. you know what i mean). Camping made me realize how much of a city girl i really am. Even though i no longer live in the city for now, in 3 years i'll be back and i absolutely cannot wait.**

**Camping was fun...ish. I had fun riding the back trails in the jeep and the 4 wheelers. That was the most fun i had, besides writing in my notebook the whole time (OH AND OF COURSE THE FIREWORKS! Happy late fourth of July, btw). Lol i got so many looks from family members and a lot of "Do you ever not write?" and "What are you doing, writing a novel?"**

**Not exactly. xD but I probably could've by now. xD**

**In any case, i didn't get ALL the prompts done, but I got a few done for this and a few for my other series of oneshots, Opening Night. I'm happy to work on them for REAL again. **

**This first one is a prompt I came up with, tell me what you think! **

**with love always, hayleynymphadora**

* * *

**A prompt I came up with on the 4****th**

**Fireworks**

Cassie:

Rachel's on my shoulders, excitedly waiting for the 4th of July fireworks to start. She's always loved the fireworks, so Shelbs and I figured we'd drive her out to the water tonight—why the hell not, right? Today is a day of celebration, after all.

As I look around me, so many people are partying with alcohol. I dry swallow and glance over at Shelby. Sympathetically, she mouths, "I know."

I'm 4 years sober now. Rachel's 3—I vowed to start sobering up when Shelby got pregnant with her. It's one of the single hardest things I've ever had to do in my life and most days it's still halfway impossible to resist temptations.

I suppose that's what happens when you're a recovering alcoholic. I take a deep breath and stare back out at the water.

Rachel smiles and laughs and points at the boats and I laugh with her. Shelby gets closer to me and wraps her arm around my waist. I'm in her embrace and my heart explodes with all of these incredible feelings and I'm okay. I'm okay.

"We have ten minutes, still," Shelby whispers in my ear. It doesn't matter how many times she does that—with her lips brushing against my skin and her warm breath down my neck—it will always give me amazing chills. I shiver in anticipation—but not just for the fireworks. I wrap my arm around Shelby, too, pressing it up against her bare back. She's in a bikini top and a half-shirt, bless her soul. I'm not sure she knows exactly what she does to me.

Or maybe she does and that's why she does it.

I smile at her, because she's so wonderfully _her_. She smiled back, warmly, because that's what Shelby does.

"Lights, Mama!" Rachel points and I follow her guiding finger. She's pointing at some of those lit flying Chinese lantern things. You know, like in Tangled?

"I see, baby." I smile again.

"Tangled!" she reminds me as if she hasn't made us all watch it a thousand times.

"That's right, Rach," Shelby grins at her. She lets her hand that's wrapped around me trail around my back, under the rim of my shirt. She's such a little tease—she knows all the little things that drive me wild. Her fingers press lighting against my stomach and my insides flip. My heart beats faster.

Finally, the fireworks start. It's an array of colors—cobalt blues and firey reds and electric whites and greens and purples. They have Rachel clapping and cheering, making Shelby and me grin—I turn my head to look at her and her face is centimeters away from mine.

"Happy 4th of July," she says, kissing me lovingly. I moan, lightly, into her kiss.

"Happy—"she cuts me off with her lips and I just sigh. "Yeah." I give in. Her kisses ignite my own internal fireworks, exploding and making my heart pound and my blood flow and my body sensitive.

I realize that I don't need the alcohol—Shelby is my celebration. Our own little celebration will continue once we're at her place and Rachel's in bed.

And as we watch the fireworks with our daughter I feel a sense of closure—a sense of warmth, a sense of home.

The sound and sight of the fireworks have me in a party-with-Shelby mood (alcohol free, of course), and the fireworks in my heart as she holds me close feel just as real—if not more.

More special.

More important.

More…alive.

Like…explosive.

Like a firework.

Like a celebration.


	7. The Sick and the Lonely

**Guest Prompt: Can we see a chapter where Rachel is ill and clingy with Shelby and Cassie feels left out?**

**joleenleo: Maybe you can write one about Rachel falling sick**

**Thank you so much for the prompts! Remember to leave more as you have them! I had a lot of fun with this one.**

**With love always, hayleynymphadora**

* * *

**The Sick and the Lonely**

Cassie shifted in her sleep and went to pull Shelby closer to her. She was cold and missing Shelby's amazing warmth. However, when she reached out for her lover, she was greeted by nothing but an empty space and cold sheets. Reluctantly, the sleepy blonde opened her eyes to investigate. She scanned Shelby's alarm clock across the room and raised her eyebrows. Where the hell was Shelby at 4:30 in the morning on a Sunday? She fell back onto her pillows and let out a moan. Slowly, she made her way out of the bed.

It was freezing. She picked Shelby's robe up from the edge of the bed and wrapped it around her, mumbling as she walked down the hallways. "I've seen Shelby's heating bill," she grumbled. "It's high enough for it to not be so damn cold…"

Cassie hated being cold. She loved cuddling up to Shelby—it was her favorite pastime and the woman was like her own personal space heater. It was great. Now if only she could find her… She looked around for her Shelby.

"…Maybe she's with Rachel…" she thought, stopping at Rachel's doorway. Her hunch had been correct. She spotted Shelby at Rachel's side, laying a washcloth over the little girl's forehead.

Covering her mouth during a yawn, Cass made her way towards Shelby and their daughter, who was crying and red faced and tossing around in her bed. Instantly, Cassandra forgot about being cold and tired. Her eyes widened in concern for her Rachel.

"What's wrong?" she asked softly.

Despite Cassandra's gentle question, Shelby jumped and spun around. She put her hand to her heart. "Jesus," she sighed. "Cassie, what are you doing out of bed?"

Instead of repeating her question, Cass said, "What are _you_ doing out of bed?"

"Rachel's sick," Shelby explained, looking sadly at Cass. "She has a high fever and won't stop throwing up, and I don't know what to do…" she wiped a hand across her forehead. Her eyes were red and looked almost too tired to function.

"How long have you been up with her?" Cass wondered worriedly, walking up to Rachel and resting the back of her hand on the young girl's cheek. Shelby was right, she was burning up.

Shelby shook her head and tried to get Rachel to take a drink of water. Rachel whined and turned her head the other way and Shelby sighed in irritation. "I don't know," she sounded exasperated. "Since like 2?"

_Holy hell, no wonder she's so tired._

Before she could stop herself, Cass pointed out, "We went to bed at 1…"

Shelby rolled her eyed. "I'm well aware, Cassandra."

Cass bit her cheek. When Shelby called her Cassandra…

"What can I do to help?" Cass swallowed. "Do you want me to call the 24 hour clinic?"

She was ignored and Shelby took the washcloth off of Rachel's forehead. She pressed her lips to her forehead instead and Rachel squirmed and sobbed. After a few seconds of silence, Cassandra sighed.

"Shelbs?"

"Yes, stay with Rachel while I call the clinic," she answered, impatiently.

Cass raised her eyebrows at her girlfriend's attitude. "Why are you being so irritable with me?!" she demanded. "I'm just trying to help…I understand you're tired, but…"

"I know, I'm sorry," Shelby muttered, heading towards the living room to grab the home phone.

Cassie kneeled down next to Rachel and kissed her cheek, stroking her arm softly. "It's okay, baby," she soothed. "You'll be okay." Inwardly she cursed Shelby for treating her so poorly. Tired or not, Shelby wasn't usually like this and she had to wonder if something else, besides the sickness and exhaustion, was wrong. And why did she feel like Cass wasn't capable of calling the damn clinic herself?!

"Where'd Mommy go?" Rachel cried out.

Cass continued to stroke her daughter's arm. "Your fever's bad, baby girl, Mommy went to call the doctor."

"No doctor!" Rachel cried harder and shoved Cassie's hand away from her. "I want _Mommy_!"

"Mommy's finding out how to make you better, sweetheart, but Mama's here—"

Rachel practically screamed. "No! I don't want you, I want Mommy!"

Letting out a long breath, Cass put her head in her hands and regretted ever getting out of bed. Her presence apparently just irritated Shelby and made Rachel cry. Cass bit back some frustrated tears of her own and tried to take Rachel's hand and calm her down. Rachel wouldn't go for it.

"Mommy!" she shrieked.

Finally, Cass threw her hands up in defeat and walked into the kitchen just as Shelby was hanging up the phone.

With a tired sigh, Cassandra nodded her head towards Rachel's room. "Your daughter only wants you."

Shelby blinked twice before responding, "Oh, so tonight she's only _my_ daughter?"

Frustrated and hurt and exhausted, Cassandra crossed her arms over her chest and shrugged. "She doesn't want anything to do with me, Shelby, I don't know what you want me do to. God himself could not make a sick 4 year old see reason—particularly not Rachel."

For the second time that night, Shelby rolled her eyes at Cass. Why had Cassandra even bothered getting out of bed? "I wasn't asking you to."

"Mommy!" Rachel yelled.

With a yawn, Shelby leaned against the kitchen counter. "Go get dressed, they want us to take her in."  
This fact infuriated Cassandra. Doctors and their damn rules. They couldn't do anything—they just wanted their money. "What the hell can they do there that we can't do here? She has some sort of stomach flu, I know it—"she was incredulous.

"You don't know that! What if it's something more serious?" Shelby said, following Cass to the bedroom so they could both dress.

As Cassie pulled on a pair of jeans, she continued. "You always assume the worst because you panic when you don't have a situation under control." She accused.

Shelby pulled a sweatshirt on over her head. "I'm not going to start this with you right now," she put her hand out defensively. "I'm not taking any chances when my daughter is sick."

There. There is was. HER daughter. Cass knew there was something else wrong and that was her first reality smack in the face. Cassandra pulled her sweatshirt into place and looked up, slowly, "_Your_ daughter." She repeated softly.

Shelby's eyes were apologetic as soon as she realized what she had said, but the damage had already been done. "Our. Cassie, baby, I mean our—"

With an upset eye roll, Cassandra grabbed her cell off the charger and blinked back a couple of tears. Her chest was constricting on her. She got her wallet from the table next to the bed and said, with a serious struggle to pronounce her words due to the tightening of her throat, "Forget it. Let's just focus on Rachel. Get her ready to go." Without so much as looking at Shelby, she walked out the bedroom door. She couldn't believe how quickly things had gone downhill.

Shelby was quick to follow her. "Baby, where are you going?" she pleaded.

"To hail a damn taxi—Rachel doesn't want me anyways," and neither do you, I guess, she was half tempted to add but didn't. Instead she just stormed out of the apartment.

Ten minutes later and they were riding in the back of a taxi to the clinic. Rachel had a bucket in her lap because she kept throwing up (though at this point there wasn't much left in her little tummy and she was mostly just dry heaving). Shelby had her arms around Rachel, who was sniffling.

Cassie continued to try to soothe Rachel anyways as well, but was mostly just ignored. Rachel only wanted her Mommy.

As they sat and waited along with about 50 other people (which pissed Cassandra off—what 50 people were sick at 4 in the morning and were more important than her Rachel?!) in the clinic, Rachel continued to sniffle in Shelby's lap, holding tight to her. Cass sat next to them, feeling guilty that she couldn't do anything to help and left out because Rachel didn't want her and Shelby was in a serious mood and had said _her_ daughter. Not their.

"It hurts, Mommy." Rachel pouted.

"What does, sweetheart?" Shelby asked her.

"Everything!"

"How'd you know she was sick?" Cass spoke for the first time in a long time and it surprised Shelby that Cassandra was actually speaking to her, after misspeaking in the bedroom.

Shelby placed her lips to Rachel's forehead again, to check her temperature. "She woke me up."

Dumbfounded, Cass said, "Where the hell was I?!"

"Asleep."

"But why didn't I hear her?" Cassie didn't understand. She was a light sleeper, most nights.

Flustered, Shelby looked at Cass. "Maybe I'm the lighter sleeper."

"Come on." Both women knew that was bullshit. Shelby could sleep through the apocalypse.

Rachel dry heaved into her bucket again and Shelby rubbed her back.

"It's a 24 hour bug," Cassie concluded. "I'm sure of it. It's been going around—"

"I'm still getting her checked out," Shelby cut her off and Cassandra had half a mind to smack her. At this point, Cassandra was done.

"Do whatever the hell you want, Shelby, she's your daughter."

"Hey," Shelby's voice got immediately gentler. She hadn't realized that Cassandra was taking what she had accidentally said so seriously and in all the hassle of the very late night (really, early morning) she hadn't realized that Cass was anything but her grumpy tired self. She now realized there was another problem at hand. "Don't say that. She's _our_ daughter—"

"Is she?!" Cass gestured to the position Mommy and Rachel were in. "That's not what you said earlier."

"Baby," Shelby put a hand over Cassie's. "I didn't mean that. I was tired, I was frustrated, I'm sorry."

Cass shifted in her seat. "I don't know, maybe Rachel did. She doesn't want me at all—she only wants her Mommy. I mean it makes sense—you're her biological mother. I'm just the girlfriend, I guess."

"Cassie, baby, stop it," Shelby begged, rubbing soft circles on Rachel's back to calm her down and rubbing soft circles on Cassie's hand as well. She felt horrible for the way she had been acting. She wished this whole night had just never happened and Cassie and Rachel felt quite the same way. "Don't ever say that. You're not "just the girlfriend". You're the love of my life. You've raised Rachel just as much as I have and she loves you just as much. She's just tired and sick—"

"And takes no comfort in my presence—"

"It's me she wants this time. Next time it'll be you. You know how indecisive she is. But we're in this together. We're _both_ her parents. Alright?"

Cassie sighed and gave Shelby a soft smile. She believed her. "Alright."

"I love you and so does Rachel."

Cass kissed Shelby's hand, quickly. "I know. I love you both, too."


	8. Baby, Oh Baby

**MiA: I love the Rachel/Shelby time. Can we see what it was like when Rachel was a baby?**

**A/N: I wasn't sure how young you wanted me to go here; if you want more at an older age or whatever just let me know. :) this is showing how Rachel was a fussy baby.**

**Thank you so much for the prompt! Let me know if there are more :)**

**I don't own the lyrics to Get Happy/Happy Days Are Here Again and if I messed a few lines up, i'm sorry.**

**with love always, hayleynymphadora**

* * *

**Baby, Oh Baby**

It seemed as if Rachel had been sobbing and screaming for hours on end.

"Why-won't-you-stop-crying?" Cassie bounced the three-week-old in her arms and rubbed at her back, trying to soothe her.

Shelby shook her head and held her arms out. "Let me see her again."

"Why? Because that worked so well the last 4 times you said it?" Cass continued to bounce Rachel and raised a condescending eyebrow at her lover.

Shelby put her hands on her hips. "Baby, you're tired and frustrated and so am I. Don't take it out on me, please." She was unreasonably calm for Shelby Corcoran—a woman who rarely had patience.

Rachel just kept screaming and Cass held her to her chest, giving her a kiss on the forehead. "Come on, sweetheart, please?" she begged of their newborn. "Your Mommies need to sleep," she said the last part in sing-song and for a small, miraculous moment, the little baby stopped crying. Shelby stared at Rachel in wonder. However, the second Cassie was silent, she started up again.

The two mothers exchanged a tired but excited glance. "She wants us to sing to her!" Shelby said.

"Of course," Cassandra rolled her eyes at the fact that they hadn't thought of it sooner. "The girl has two musical mothers, why wasn't that the first thing we thought of?!"

Instead of bouncing the screaming Rachel, Cass started to slowly rock her back and forth. Shelby stood behind her and wrapped her arms around both baby and Cassie. She started singing,

"_Forget your troubles,_"

And Cassie caught on, coming in with, "_Happy days,"_

"_Come on, get happy."_

_ "__Are here again,"_

_ "__You better chase all your cares away,"_

_ "__The skies above are clear again."_

_ "__Shout hallelujah,"_

_ "__So let's sing a song,"_

_ "__Come on get happy,"_

_ "__Of cheer again."_

_ "__Get ready for the judgment days,"_

_ "__Happy days are here again."_

They took a breath in preparation for the next verse and grinned. Rachel had stopped crying.

_"__The sun is shining,"_

_ "__All together,"_

_ "__Come on get happy,"_

_ "__Shout it now,"_

_ "__The Lord is waiting to take your hand,"_

_ "__There's no one who can doubt it now,"_

_ "__Shout hallelujah,"_

_ "__So let's tell the world," _

_ "__Come on get happy,"_

_ "__About it now,_

_ "__Get ready for the judgment days,"_

_ "__Happy days are here again."_

After the first verse Rachel had stopped crying and by the second she had started looking up at her mothers in awe, her little eyes all wide. Shelby looked at Cassandra lovingly and Cass gave her a look of relief. Maybe if they finished the song, she'd go to sleep? And then—truly happy day—so could they?!

Rachel's little eyes fluttered open and shut—a most precious sight to see. Cassandra turned her head and gave Shelby a soft kiss on the lips. "I'm sorry I was moody." She whispered, her headache starting to dissipate.

"It's alright, sweetheart," Shelby kissed her back. "I'm sorry, too,"

Rachel would have none of this no singing thing. She started to whine again and Shelby started singing once more almost immediately.

"_We're heading cross a river, soon your cares will all be gone."_

_ "__They'll be no more from now on,"_

The two women harmonized before Shelbs continued,

"_From now on,"_

_ "__Forget your troubles,"_

_ "__Happy days,"_

_ "__Come on get happy,"_

_ "__Are here again,"_

_ "__You better chase all your cares away,"_

_ "__The skies above are clear again,"_

_ "__Shout hallelujah,"_

_ "__So let's sing a song,"_

_ "__And just get happy,"_

_ "__Of cheer again,"_

_ "__Happy times,"_

_"__Happy times,_"

_"__Happy nights,"_

_ "__Happy nights,"_

They finished in unison and harmonized on the last note,

"_Happy days are here again,"_

Finally, FINALLY, Rachel was asleep. Cass very lightly set her down in her crib and she and Shelby took the baby monitor and crept soundlessly out of the nursery, shutting the door behind them.

Once they had made it back out into the living room, Cass flopped onto the couch with a groan. Shelby flopped down next to her and then ended up laying across her.

"Peace," the brunette said triumphantly.

"She is officially the fussiest baby I've ever met." Cassandra complained. "She's lucky I love her so damn much."

"She seems to really love music," Shelby noted.

"Hmm." Cass said. "I think we're raising a Broadway legend, Shelbs."

Shelby didn't hear—like Rachel, she was fast asleep.


	9. Love and Hate

**Guest prompt: Maybe you can do one where Cassie, Shelby, and Rachel are out one day and someone starts crap with them for being lesbians.**

**Thank you SO MUCH for this prompt. I had a lot of fun writing this one. xD**

**To clarify, there was some confusion about Cassie and Shelby's relationship-Cass and Shelby were together for about 2 years before they decided to have Rachel together. Shelby decided to be the one who was going to get pregnant (which Cassie was fine with because she was a dance instructor at NYADA and still is and couldn't really afford to be pregnant). When Rachel was about 5, they finally decided to move in together (why they didn't already live together if they were going to have a baby together? Cassie basically lived over at Shelby's anyways, but she lived in her own apartment because it was closer to NYADA on weekdays, plus both women, even though they had a baby together, were still a little afraid of taking things too fast. Sounds weird because they decided to have a kid and everything, but Cassie and Shelby are complicated human beings, what can i say? xD). Cassie and Shelby finally got married when Rachel was eight.**

**Hope that clears everything up!**

**I love you all and thank you for all of the prompts! Understand that I'm getting a lot of them now, and though i'm perfectly happy with that and would like it to continue, there's only so much I can do at once, you know? So a little bit of patience (it is summer and I don't ALWAYS have the opportunity to write) and I will get all of the prompts written, happily.**

**With love always, hayleynymphadora**

* * *

**Love and Hate**

It was about noon thirty on a Saturday when little 7 year old Rachel begged her mommies to take her to the park and the two women looked at each other and shrugged and thought, why the hell not? Now it was close to one and Rachel had only been playing for about 10 minutes. She was having a blast on the swing set and Cassie and Shelby were sitting on a bench, watching her.

Against their earlier practices of absolutely no PDA, they had started to be more public about their relationship. Their hands were intertwined-a perfect match-and Shelby had her head against Cassie's shoulder. Nobody had seemed to have an issue with it...until the pissed off mother of three approached them.

"I'm sorry, I thought this was a kid friendly park, not a gay pride parade," she marched up to the two of them and Cassie's instincts had her moving to stand immediately but Shelby held her down. But Shelby couldn't physically restrain Cass from opening her mouth.

"Excuse me?"

"I brought my kids to the park to play, not to expose them to the sick activities of people like _you_." the woman crossed her arms over her chest and Shelby rolled her eyes. Quick, someone call the cops, two women were holding hands in public. She had thought that society was a bit less ignorant by now. Apparently she was sadly mistaken.

Cass, ever Shelby's savior, stood, dragging Shelby up with her.

"People like US? We are just regular people like you and like that guy over there. So I love Shelby-it wasn't a choice I made any more than you chose the color of your eyes." she protested. Cassie did not want to deal with this today-she had just wanted to peacefully spend some time with her family at the park-why did this woman have to go out of her way to ruin that?

Shelby was going to add to what Cassie was saying but didn't know what. She was sort of distracted-Cassandra defending them like that was a pretty damn sexy sight to see.

"How dare you compare me to YOU. How dare you compare your gross little games to something like eye color." the woman refused to just let it be.

"How dare I?" Cass raised an eyebrow and Shelby tried not to laugh at the term, "gross little games". Cass continued, "How dare YOU have such a closed mind that you can't see that my undying love for this beautiful woman standing next to me is all that matters. It's honestly sad that you believe that my gender restricts me from loving her in any way. It isn't a crime to hold my girlfriend's hand in public. We're not hurting you or anybody else. Now I'm going to kindly ask you to get the hell out of my face and leave my family alone."

Shelby was so turned on by Cassandra's protective side, she didn't know what to do with herself. She stayed silent and gripped Cassie's hand tighter. Cass half-worried that this homophobic woman might actually try to hit one of them. Instead, the woman said,

"People like you disgust me," and went to walk away. But Cassandra July would have the last word, if it killed her.

"It's a good thing I don't live my life to please you, then."

Shelby stared at the woman who had so long ago captured her heart. As if it were possible, she had just made her love her even more.

"I love you so much," she said to her.

Cass gave her Shelby an adoring smile. "I love you so much, too."

"That was very hot," Shelby admitted.

This made Cass snicker. "Glad my ranting inadvertently turned you on."

Shelby bit her lip and laughed and blushed. "Well..."

Rachel decided to take that moment to run up to her Mommies. "Who was that?" she asked Cassie. "Why were you yelling at her about Mommy?" she cocked her little head to the side in confusion. Cass shook her head and responded,

"Just someone who didn't understand my relationship with Mommy. Remember how I told you there are some people who are angry about it?"

Rachel nodded, remembering the conversation they'd had. "That's not very nice of her. What's there to understand? You love Mommy and Mommy loves you." she shrugged.

Shelby grinned at their daughter's smarts. "That's right, Rach. You're so smart."

Rachel just laughed and blushed and ran back to play.

. . .

Rachel was in bed 2 hours ago.

When Shelby ran her hands through Cassandra's hair and pressed their lips together, the blonde let out a moan and shivers rippled through her body. Shelby took Cassie's bottom lip and bit it lightly, driving her insane. She was being particularly forward tonight and Cassie thought that if this was the reward she got for defending them...

"Careful," Cass pulled back, out of breath. "We wouldn't want our "gross little games" getting out of hand," she mocked.

Shelby let out a laugh and pressed Cass deeper into the mattress, straddling her. "Wouldn't we?"

The devilish grin that spread across Cassandra's lips made Shelby swoon.


	10. Not Without My Mommy

**Guest Prompt: maybe you could do one where Cassie takes Rachel to see Shelby's show, and when they go backstage, Rachel throws a tantrum cause she doesn't want to leave her mommy?**

**Thanks so much for the prompt! I know this one's short, but I wasn't really sure how long to drag out a tantrum, you know? But all the same, I liked writing the little fluff and if you have anymore, let me know!**

**With love always, hayleynymphadora**

* * *

**Not Without My Mommy**

"Go on in, Cass." Shelby's body guard grinned at her. "Hey, Rachel." he nodded his head at the little three year old and she smiled nervously, clutching onto Cassie's skirt shyly as they walked into Shelby's dressing room. She was doing a concert version of Wicked for a benefit and Cassie promised to take Rachel to go and see her before the show.

Cassandra opened the door and rushed up behind Shelby, wrapping her arms around her waist and placing kisses on her neck. "Mmm. Hello, Miss Elphaba," she greeted her girlfriend.

With a laugh, Shelby tilted her head back before adjusting it and giving Cassie a peck on the lips. "Hello, you." she responded. Rachel ran up to Shelby, ecstatically.

"Mommy!" she jumped up and Shelby caught her and pulled her into a hug.

"Hi, sweet pea," Shelby kissed their little girl on the forehead. "How are you?"

"Good!" Rachel beamed.

They stayed in Shelby's dressing room with her until she had 30 minutes left till show. They had gone all out for this benefit-had painted Shelby green and got her in costume and the whole nine yards. However, when it was time for Cassie and Rachel to get to their seats, Rach wasn't going for it.

"No, Mommy!" she stuck out her lower lip in a pout and crossed her arms over her chest. "Don't make me leave!"

Shelby's heart broke. When Rachel got like this it usually meant she was tired or just moody and needy. All the same...

"Baby girl, Mommy has to go sing," she said softly, kissing Rachel's cheek. "But I'll be back soon, okay? Then we can go home and Mama and I will tuck you in together and everything will be okay. That sound okay?"

"No!" Rachel started to cry. "Don't go!"

Cassie put her hand on Rachel's back and crouched down to her level. "You're going to see Mommy all night, panda-boo. Don't cry. She's going to be singing for you allll night long. We're not really going anywhere."

Rachel stomped her foot and sobbed harder. "I'm not going! Not without my Mommy too!"

Cass and Shelby exchanged a sad look. This was actually very adorable, but it was also very heartbreaking.

"I'll only be gone for 20 minutes now, Rach, and then you'll see me for hours and hours. Please be good for Mama?"

Rachel cried harder. "But I want you AND Mama."

"It's only for a little bit, baby. I promise, okay? Please stop crying," Shelby gave her daughter a big hug and Rachel sniffed. "Okay..."

Cassie wiped Rachel's tears with the sleeve of her sweater.

"Come on, okay? Mommy has to finish getting ready."

"I love you, Mommy."

Shelby smiled. Rachel was such a precious little girl. "I love you too, Rachel."


	11. To the Beach

**Guest Prompt: Can we see them take Rachel swimming?**

**Um, hell yes we can see them take Rachel swimming. How's a hot day at the beach sound? Hope it sounds good cuz that's what I wrote and I had a lot of fun with it. I caught myself grinning as I typed at more than one part. I hope you like it as much as I did, and tell me what you think and thank you for the prompt!**

**Any more prompts, you know what to do!**

**with love always, hayley**

* * *

**To the Beach**

It felt like the hottest day in the whole universe. Shelby was fanning herself, leaning against the counter but Cassandra was like "Forget the damn fanning thing," and had the freezer open, pressing her bare back to it. She had been walking around the apartment in a bikini top and short (VERY short) jean shorts. It was probably the most distracting thing Shelby had ever seen in her life, so she reiterated by wearing a bikini top as well…but skipping the jean shorts and going straight for the bikini bottoms.

It was just too hot to wear clothes—anything just stuck to them. Even seven year old Rachel was walking around in a bathing suit.

"Okay, this is getting ridiculous," Shelby said as she checked the temperature on her phone. It was like it was just getting hotter and hotter outside and inside. Their air conditioner could only do so much. They could only afford for it to get a whole lot colder in there. "104 degrees, Cassie. Baby, that's too hot. We need to get out of here."

"It's hot everywhere, Shelbs. We can't just pack up and go to Alaska…" she closed the freezer and Shelby pressed her face to Cassandra's cold back. Cassie jumped forward. "No! It's too hot for this touchy feely stuff!" she laughed and Shelby laughed too, trying to get Cass to go towards her.

"Come on, baby,"

"I love you, but you'd better get away from me," Cass threatened.

"Or else what?"

Cass laughed, "Hell I don't know, it's too hot to make me think."

After Shelby rolled her eyes, Rachel ran into the kitchen towards her mommies and sat up on the bar-like stool in front of the counter. "Can we go swimming?" she asked innocently, fanning herself with her hand like Shelby was moments earlier.

Cass's eyes brightened and she turned to Shelby. "There's a thought," her eyes sparkled at the idea of cool water hitting her body, and splashing around with Shelby and Rachel. "And look, babe, we're all coincidentally already in our bathing suits… of course I'd have to go put on the bikini bottoms…" she raised a suggestive and beggar-ish eyebrow at her Shelby and Shelby rolled her eyes.

"We're not going to the pool, it'll be packed." Shelby protested. It was already hot and frustrating enough, she didn't need to be swarmed by people and trying not to lose Rachel and it would just be really chaotic.

"But we can go to the beach!" Cass protested back, wrapping her arms around Shelby and peppering her face with light little kisses. Rachel giggled at her Mama being silly. "Pleassssseeeeee Shelbyyy?" Cassie asked, continuing to kiss at Shelby's cheeks and chin and just all over her face.

Shelby raised her eyebrows. "I thought it was too hot to hug me and kiss me? Hmm?" she accused.

"But if we went to the beach we'd be cool!" she moved her lips to Shelby's ear so Rachel would definitely not hear her add, "And wet."

With a blush, Shelby pushed Cassie off of her and giggled. "If you want to go to the beach, you'd better go get ready. I'm leaving in 10 minutes." She decided.

And Cassandra was off. Suddenly it was a race to see who could get ready to go the fastest. Shelby grabbed sun tan lotion for her and Cass and sunscreen for Rachel. Cass put on the rest of her bikini and grabbed towels and sunglasses. Rachel sat and patiently waited at the kitchen counter. She was already in her swimsuit, and she knew how to swim, so she didn't need to get anything like a life jacket.

Almost exactly 10 minutes later and they were walking down to the parking garage to get the car. At this point, with the hot sun beating down on the sidewalk and sweat dripping down the side of her back, Shelby regretted agreeing to this beach trip. Wouldn't the beach be just as packed at the pool?! They drove down to the part of the beach they always went to and lo and behold they were actually the only ones there. Shelby could hardly contain her surprise and Cassie tapped her leg lightly.

"Told you it would be fun. Let's go." She unbuckled herself and opened the door for Rachel so she could get out. Shelby undid her buckle and followed her family out towards the water. God did it look heavenly. She watched as Rachel got on Cassie's back and they ran down towards the water. She chased after them, excitedly.

Since they knew Rachel knew how to swim and were confident that she would be okay, after getting into the water (which was so cold Cassie nearly screamed but it truthfully felt amazing), Shelby and Cassie let Rachel swim out past the drop off with them. If she faltered or got scared, one of her moms would hold her and make sure she was okay.

Cassie did a dive and swam out far before popping her blonde head up and letting out an excited yell.

"WOOOO! Come on, slow pokes!" she had a huge grin on her face and Shelby found it absolutely adorable how much fun she was having. With Rachel behind her, they swam out to Cassie and splashed her. Cassie dropped her mouth in protest as Rachel threw water at her face. "2 against one is definitely not fair!" Cassie shrieked, trying to splash them back.

Shelby laughed and grabbed Cass by the waist, dragging her underwater. When they resurfaced, they were greeted with a splash in the face each by Rachel who was giggling uncontrollably. "I got you!" Rachel squealed, splashing them again.

"Oh really?" Cass raised her eyebrow before picking Rachel up into her arms and pulling her out deeper.

Rachel squealed louder. "No, Mama!" she laughed loudly.

"You gonna splash me again little one?" Cassie tested her.

"Probably," Rachel laughed.

"Then yes, Mama!" she laughed back, tossing Rachel up into the air and Rachel screamed giddily and plugged her nose before crashing into the water in front of Shelby. She surfaced and glared at Cassie menacingly.

"It's on!" Rachel announced.

"Oh is it now?" Cassie said, amused that her daughter was challenging her. "Bring it on, sweetheart."

As she spoke, Shelby swam up under her and she screamed. Suddenly she was on Shelby's shoulders, holding tight to the top of Shelby's head so she wouldn't slip. "What are you doing?" she laughed.

Shelby shrugged, making Cassie move. Cassie about screamed. "Having fun," Shelby smirked.

"Don't you DARE drop me!" Cassie shrieked with a giggle. "Or I swear to god, Shelby, I'll—"

"You'll what?" Shelby challenged.

"I don't think you want to know what I WON'T do," Cassandra threatened her, trying to hold on as Shelby moved. Quickly, Shelby grabbed hold of Cassie's shins so she wouldn't fall. Rachel laughed at her mothers.

"You two are funny."

"Glad we amuse you," Cassie grinned down at her. She was also very thankful that Rachel hadn't caught on to the reference she had just threatened Shelby with—good thing their little girl was only 7 and still had the purest of minds. Cass hoped more than anything that mind would stay pure, even though she knew with a sadness that Rachel was getting older and older and that her mind wouldn't stay very pure for much longer.

Rachel laughed again and jumped up, grabbing Cassie's foot. Shelby tried to hold her steady but Rachel, being silly, tried pushing Cassie's feet up so she would fall. Cass had told her to bring it, right? Cass screamed and tried to hold on, and Shelby did too, but their skin was just too slippery to keep her from falling. She flipped backwards and went under the water. When she came back up she glowered at Shelby and stuck her tongue out. "I thought you loved me," she pouted, pretending to be upset. "Apparently my threat wasn't threatening enough."

"Your threat was PLENTY threatening." Shelby assured her. "And I DO love you."

Rachel grinned and started to swim away from them, back towards shore. "I'm gonna go build a sand castle!" she announced.

"Alright, stay where we can see you!" Cassie yelled after her.

"Kayyy!"

The shore was so far away from where they were that they could see Rachel's body outline, which told them where she was, but Rachel couldn't see them. Shelby pulled Cassie closer to her in the water and Cass wrapped her legs around Shelby's hips, pressing up against her. Now that they were cooler, they could stand to be near each other without sweating to death, and now that Rachel was out on the beach, they could have a little private time with just each other. Cassie slid her hands up Shelby's arms and Shelby pulled her face closer, planting a sweet kiss on her cheek.

"You weren't being super serious about that threat, were you?" she asked, pleadingly.

Cassie laughed, teasing her. "I don't know, Shelby, how do I know I can trust you when you just let me drop like that?"

"You slipped!" Shelby said.

Cassie started laughing harder and Shelby stuck her tongue out at her. "You perv," she laughed, kissing her again. Cass didn't even fight back this time, she just melted into Shelby's touch. The two women bobbed up and down as the waves crashed against them.

"I love you," Cassie told her, taking her lips against hers warmly. "I really do. So much."

"I love you too," Shelby told her, treading water to keep them both up.

. . .

Later on and they were all lying on the beach, Shelbs and Cass trying to make the most out of the sun and get a tan and Rachel working on her sand castle. It kept getting knocked down by waves.

"Build it closer to the dry sand, Rach," Cass suggested.

"Then it doesn't stick!" Rachel complained.

Shelby laughed. "Do you want our help, baby?"

"No!" Rachel said sternly. She could be so stubborn sometimes.

10 minutes later her castle had fallen again and she was begging for help, so Cass and Shelby spent an hour or so building a castle with her. It was a pretty epic castle, as far as they were concerned. They took a bunch of pictures with their proud creation before rinsing the sand off of them in the water once more and drying off, deciding it was about time to go home. Even though it was still super-hot out, they were cooler than they were.

And Cassie hadn't been too serious about her threat.


	12. Baby, You're the One

**Prompt from me: Dirty Dancing is one of Cassie's all-time favorite movies.**

**So this is very heavy on Shelby/Cassie and like no Rachel at all but it was a thought that came to my mind and I couldn't NOT write it. **

**Tell me what you think! I'm still working on the other prompts but just felt this was necessary,**

**With love always, hayley**

* * *

**You're the One**

They had finished putting a two year old Rachel to bed and she was out cold, exhausted after a long day of doing almost absolutely nothing. Seriously, it had just been a really lazy winter day. Cassie had on a pair of almost loose (to the point of resting very barely on her hips) grey sweat pants and a black tank top and Shelby wore a pair of black yoga pants and an NYU sweatshirt. They had planned on just relaxing and watching a movie or something after putting Rachel to bed, but they had been relaxing all day, and Cassandra was a dancer. She needed to get up and move.

"Watch Dirty Dancing with meeeeee," she begged Shelby while following her around the house, out to the kitchen while Shelby poured herself some tea, and then out to the living room where Shelby sat down on the couch and Cassie sat on her knees, facing her, next to her. She figured if she watched Dirty Dancing, and least she could get up and move with it and maybe Shelby would even move a bit with her…

"But we've seen it SOOO many times!" Shelby said, giving her girlfriend a knowing look. Cassie raised a condescending eyebrow.

"It's a classic! How many times have you made me watch Funny Girl?" she demanded.

Shelby rolled her eyes. "But Funny Girl is a—"

"Classic?" Cassie challenged.

"I was going to say Barbra musical…" Shelby mumbled, taking a sip of her tea.

Cassie crossed her arms over her chest.

Shelby actually let out a laugh at her. "You have that movie memorized verbatim. You could probably sit here and perform it yourself—"

With a sneaky grin, Cassie raised her eyebrows at the idea and Shelby felt like maybe she shouldn't have given her the idea. Although, this could be interesting.

Standing, Cassie pulled her hair out of her pony tail and shook her head so that her long blonde hair fell down into gorgeous locks onto her shoulders. Shelby was immediately entranced. Maybe that was the best idea she had had in a long time. Shelby put her tea on the side table and sat up on her knees on the couch and watched as Cass did a backwards somersault and then a split to move backwards to one side of the room. Shelby stared at her—couldn't take her eyes off of her. She was so happy that she fell in love with a dancer.

"Nobody puts Cassie in a corner." She got on her hands and knees and rolled her head, looking up at Shelby seductively. Shelby bit her lip and decided to play along.

"Cassie,"

"Yes, Shelby?" Cass walked on her hands and knees over to Shelby before putting her hands on Shelby's knees. Shelby's stomach flipped.

"How do you call your lover girl?" she changed the words to fit their situation.

"Come here, lover girl," Cassie ran her hands up Shelby's legs and down them, slowly, dragging out the process to be a tease. Shelby forgot how to breathe and almost didn't continue to say,

"And if she doesn't answer?" Shelby nearly choked out as Cassie got on Shelby's lap, one leg on each side of her and whispered,

"Oh, lover girl,"

"And—"Cassie pressed her lips lightly to Shelby's neck and Shelby gasped, saying, "If she still doesn't answer?"

"I simply say, baby," Cass pulled her head back and swooped low, her legs gripping Shelby tightly so she wouldn't fall. "Oh baby," she sang, putting her hands on Shelby's shoulders. "My sweet baby," she kissed Shelby passionately before breaking away and breathing out, still in tune, "You're the one."

"I love you," Shelby sighed. "If you want to watch Dirty Dancing then hell let's watch Dirty Dancing."

"I thought you just did?" Cassie raised an eyebrow and kissed Shelby's cheek before getting off of her and winking, walking away.

"Wait!" Shelby stood. "Where are you going?"

Cassie swayed her hips as she walked and of course Shelby was compelled to follow her.

Damn the dancer's skill.


	13. Biological

**Guest: Rachel is a newborn and Cassie gets jealous because Rachel nurses and is instinctually closer to Shelby?**

**Thanks so much! Sorry this is so short-it was a really good idea and even though it's short I had fun writing it, but if any of you want more done with this, just let me know...**

**With love always, hayleynymphadora**

* * *

**Biological**

**Cassie: **

Rachel cries and screams and kicks until Shelby undoes the top of her shirt and pulls our newborn-her newborn, really-close to her breast so our baby-her baby, really-can have breakfast. She latches onto her quickly and is immediately silent. I watch them from across the room, admittedly bitter.

I can never get Rachel to stop crying.

I can never calm her down.

And that breast that newborn is feeding off of, is mine. I called it first, Rachel. That's not fair; you can't just take it away from me.

Fine, yes, I'm jealous. I'm bitter and it's not really because Rachel's temporarily claimed Shelby's breasts as her own.

No matter how many times Shelby says that Rachel is _our_ baby, and that she's equally _ours_, I can't help but feel like she's wrong. Biologically, Rachel is Shelby's baby. _Shelby_ can feed her and calm her and because of that is so much closer to her. They share the same blood. Technically, I'm not even related to the baby I'm supposed to call _ours_ and not just _hers_.

But Rachel is hers. Rachel belongs to Shelby. I'm not really her mother too. I mean, just look at them. Shelby smiles down at her and she feeds slowly, seemingly very content. I've never been able to make our Rachel so content.

When I hold her, she screams and kicks and cries until I give her to Shelby. Almost as soon as Shelby takes her, 9 times out of 10, she is silent. Shelby gets the motherly instinct connection.

And I'm just what I feared I would be.

I'm just Mommy's girlfriend.


	14. Father Figure

**ComplexStatus: Rachel gets into a fight with a classmate who has been teasing Rachel because she has two mothers and doesn't know what a "father" is. She asks her mothers about her father's identity.**

**I had SO MUCH FUN writing this one. Thank you so much!**

**If you have any more prompts, you know what to do.**

**I hope the length of this one makes up for the lengths of the last two... lol**

**with love always, hayley**

* * *

**Father Figure**

When Rachel, in December, had gotten the lead in the winter play, Veronica got jealous and snooty and said, in front of the whole third grade class, "Oh, are BOTH of your mommies going to be there to watch their "little star"?!"

Veronica had once overheard Cassie and Shelby calling Rachel their Little Star at the last recital.

That was the day the taunting had started. At the time, Rachel had rolled her eyes and ignored the girl. She wasn't worth it, Rachel knew. But that was only the beginning.

A class field trip came up and the teacher was asking for chaperones. Rachel raised her hand to tell her teacher, "Mom said she could go-"

"Which one?" Veronica laughed.

Rachel gave her a glare and sat up straighter. "Shelby." she told her teacher. "Shelby is Mom, Cassandra is Mama." she grew sick and tired of Veronica teasing her about it.

"Okay, thank you, Rachel." her teacher smiled at her.

Veronica snorted.

Rachel sighed, but never told her mommies that Veronica made fun of her and them like that. Little things like that happened all the time, and though they were bothersome, she wasn't going to let it get to her, she promised herself. She refused to.

Mother's Day rolled around and everyone made a huge paper flower for their mommies. Rachel stayed in from 2nd recess so she could make 2 of them.

At 3rd recess, a bunch of kids were playing American Idol-Rachel's all-time favorite game. She ran over and asked if she could join.

"Sorry, Rachel." said Veronica, not sounding sorry at all. "We started at 2nd recess and auditions are over. If you hadn't been making a flower for BOTH mommies, you could've played with us. Now you only get to watch."

Rachel stomped her foot. "But I HAD to make one for both mommies! They're BOTH my mommies and they BOTH celebrate Mother's Day!"

"Only one's your REAL Mommy. Your Mama's just a fake mommy."

At this point, Rachel had about had enough of all of this. She had dealt with comments like this all year and it was seriously starting to upset her. Nobody was allowed to talk about her mommies like that. Tears brimmed in her eyes.

"Mama is NOT a fake mommy!" she said protectively, heatedly.

"Two mommies is gross anyways," Veronica sneered. "You're supposed to have a mommy and a daddy, not two mommies."

"Says who?" Rachel's blood boiled. "My mommies are not gross!" she insisted, stomping her foot again and crossing her arms. "You don't even KNOW them!"

"Yeah, well who's the daddy one?" Veronica asked. "I bet it's your Mama."

This comment confused Rachel and made a couple of tears fall down her face. Her Mama was her Mama and her Mommy was her Mommy. Both were girls, neither was the daddy one. "What do you mean?"

"Who's the boy? Who's in charge?" Veronica demanded.

"Neither one is the boy! They're both girls!" Rachel was disgusted. "And they're both in charge!" she practically yelled.

Now Veronica crossed her arms, and a few of the other classmates crossed their arms behind her, joining her. Rachel turned around to see which of her classmates were on her side. No one was. Another tear slipped down her cheek. She was starting to really hate going to school, which was sad because she really liked learning new things.

"Well there had to be a daddy or you wouldn't be born. Do you even know who your daddy is?"

Rachel sniffed, her head spinning. "Just leave me alone, Veronica," she said the girl's name like it was poison on her tongue and stomped off towards the swing set. But Veronica and her new posse just followed her. Rachel felt trapped and targeted and scared and angry.

"Do your mommies kiss?" Veronica asked, scrunching her nose up.

"Don't your parents?" Rachel yelled back.

"MY parents are regular. 2 girls kissing is gross."

"Shut up!" Rachel screamed at her, her face turning red, her eyes red and puffy. Why couldn't Veronica just leave her alone like she said?

Veronica thought about how Rachel's mommies had gotten married a couple weeks before. "Your mommies shouldn't be allowed to be married." she said. "Only boys and girls should marry each other."

"I said shut up!" Rachel screamed, standing and shoving Veronica hard onto the ground. Veronica screamed back and stood, smacking Rachel in the face. Rachel almost fell on the ground. She pulled on Veronica's hair and Veronica started crying. She scratched Rachel's arm, leaving marks, and Rachel cried harder.

"Leave my mommies alone!" she screamed, almost hyperventilating.

Finally the teacher came to break them up.

"Girls!" their teacher yelled, holding them apart. Another teacher moved to grab Rachel and hold her back. Rachel fought against him. "Make her take back what she said!" she yelled, sobbing until she couldn't see.

It bothered her that people were always giving her mommies dirty looks and starting arguments at the store and in the park and apparently at recess. Why couldn't they just love each other in peace?! And what Veronica had said had really gotten to Rachel. Now she was seriously wondering about who her daddy was. She didn't know much about the birds and the bees, but she knew enough to know that Cassie and Shelby couldn't have made her.

"Keep her away from me!" Veronica shrieked. "She's crazy. I guess that's what happens when you have two mommies!"

"THAT IS ENOUGH!" The principal now got involved, walking up to the group of students and teachers. "Take these girls to my office and don't let them out of your sight. Someone needs to call Shelby and Cassandra and someone else call Juliet and Peter. Everyone else needs to go back to class right this minute!"

Everyone did as they were told.

. . .

Shelby was putting up a last minute assignment and finalizing grades in the computer when Rachel's school called her. She called Cassandra immediately afterwards, extremely concerned and hoping to god that by some miracle Cassandra could get out of teaching so they could go make sure Rachel was okay.

"5-6-7-8 and Go!" Cassie's phone went off across the room and she turned her attention to it. "Baby," she answered, seeing that it was Shelby. "Hey, I really don't have time to talk right now, can-"

"Well you'd better make time," Shelby cut her off, sliding her jacket on and grabbing her purse. "Rachel got into a fight at school."

Cass nearly choked on the swallow of water she had just poured into her mouth. "She WHAT?! What the hell happened?" Rachel was a teacher's pet-a straight A student, and a model child in class. What could she have possibly gotten into a fight about?!

"That's what we're going to find out. I'll be at NYADA in ten, I'm already down the street." Shelby answered. "I love you."

"Love you, too."

Cassie had no idea how their Rachel-sweet and smart Rachel-could have possibly gotten into such a serious fight that the school had to call Shelby. She hoped to god her little girl wasn't injured.

She turned off the stereo and said, "Okay, listen up. I want you all to get into pairs and come up with a kick ass impressive dance number to perform for me in 2 days for a grade. I have a family emergency, I have to go." she put on her own jacket over her leotard and fishnets. She knew she would probably look like the trashiest person in the world once she walked into an elementary school, but she didn't have time to change. She grabbed her phone and shoved it into her jacket pocket. "Get going and don't disappoint me, you have 2 whole days to work, I expect excellence. If you need something while I'm gone, Michael's in charge as of now."

Cass made her way out of the studio and rushed down the hallway, out the front door of the school, and into the cab that Shelby was waiting in. She kissed Shelby's cheek in greeting.

Shelby eyed her wife up and down. "Nice outfit."

Cassie rolled her eyes. "Rachel's more important that taking ten minutes to find a pair of jeans. What do we know?" she asked, worriedly.

"Rachel got into a serious fight with Veronica Sanchez during third recess." Shelby informed her nervously.

It amused Cassandra that her daughter got a third recess, but she refocused on the problem at hand.

"Why can those two never get along?!" she put her head in her hands, worriedly. "Is Rachel okay?"

"I don't know,"

Cass sensed how tense Shelby was and reached out to take her hand. "I'm sure she's fine, sweetheart. We know Rachel. She wouldn't get into a fight without a really good reason-"

"That's why I'm worried," Shelby squeezed Cassandra's hand.

. . .

When they got to the school, they found Rachel, soft tears flowing down her face, silently. She was sitting in a chair outside of the principal's office, being watched by two teachers. The other girl was sitting four chairs down from her, with her arms crossed over her chest and a disgusted expression on her face when Shelby and Cassie rushed towards Rachel.

"Rachel, sweetheart, are you okay?" Shelby worried, looking her up and down for bruises and scars. She found the scratch down her arm and looked into Rachel's eyes, her own eyes wide. "Did she do this to you?" Rachel nodded slowly and Cassie had to remind herself she couldn't beat up a little girl.

As if on cue, Veronica's parents walked in, brusquely, towards Veronica. Cassie took very slow breaths. She couldn't punch this little girl but she could take out the little girl's parents. Shelby grabbed her hand tightly, practically reading her mind. She searched Rachel for more scars and found a small bruise forming on her face from where Veronica had smacked her. She placed a soft kiss to Rachel's forehead. Cassie kissed her forehead, too.

"Sweetheart, why would you get into a fight with this girl?" Cass crouched down to Rachel's level and asked her softly. "You know that fighting isn't okay, don't you?"

She knew she was being a hypocrite but she had NEVER fought anyone in front of Rachel, besides verbally sticking up for her and Shelby against a few homophobic people in public once or twice. This was about Rachel, anyways, not her.

"I'm-I'm sorry," Rachel cried. "She was talking about you and mommy again and I-I asked her to leave me alone and-she-she wouldn't listen and-she was being so-so mean and it-wasn't f-f-fair," Rachel cried and Shelby stroked her arm softly while Cassie caressed her head.

"Again, Rachel what do you mean again?" Shelby asked, confused. "What was she saying about Mama and me?"

"I-I had stayed inside at second-second recess to make you and Mama flowers for-for Mother's Day and-" Rachel couldn't breathe and just kept crying. She thought her mommies would probably be very upset with her for fighting Veronica, and she really didn't want to be in trouble. She hated getting in trouble.

"Shh, it's okay," Cassie soothed her. "It's okay, Rachel, we're going to straighten this out, alright?"

"We love you, Rachel," Shelby told her.

"Are-are you horribly mad at me?" Rachel asked, her breath staggering. The hyperventilating had started up again. She was afraid. And what if something like this happened again? And her arm hurt from where Veronica scratched her and her face hurt from where the bruise was forming. "I-I'm really sorry. I don't want you to-to be mad-I just couldn't take-take it anymore-it hurt too much to hear her-talk about you-and-I'm sorry I pushed her."

Cass and Shelby exchanged guilty and sympathetic glances. Why hadn't they known Rachel was being harassed by this girl about having two mothers before today? It was like a smack in the face. They had thought they knew everything that went on in Rachel's life-and had reason to believe that, since she came home every day and talked about her day nonstop. They had assumed that if someone was picking on her, she would have talked to them about it.

"We're not mad, baby," Shelby told her, softly, kissing her temple. "But we need to hear the whole story, okay? Please tell us everything. We won't be upset, will we Cassie?"

"Of course not," Cassie kissed her other temple. "Tell us what's going on, Rach."

They got the whole story out of her before the principal had them all go in and talk to him. The other girl tried to blame Rachel for the whole thing, even though Shelby and Cassie trusted everything Rachel was saying and since Rachel was telling the truth, she tried to explain to the principal that Veronica had started it verbally. The principal apologized to both families for the misunderstanding, then spewed some bullshit about how school policy says that since Rachel pushed her first, she started it, and therefore was suspended for a week. Veronica got off with a warning.

If Shelby hadn't been holding on to Cassie so tightly, the principal would have been sporting a new black eye, after being bitched out profusely. But she knew that it wasn't good for Rachel to see that, and controlled it. She needed to set an example, no matter how upset she was with the school system and their stupid rules.

They took Rachel home after collecting all her school books and Cassandra spent an hour on the phone afterwards, apologizing to Madame T at NYADA and trying to explain the whole situation. She was given the all clear-Madame T was a family friend and understood emergency situations. Plus, she was sort of a sucker for Rachel-was heavily anticipating when Rachel would turn 18 and hopefully apply for NYADA herself.

After which, they sat Rachel down in the living room for a talk.

"Rachel, sweetheart, next time someone harasses you like that you need to tell us right away, okay? Don't keep things like that a secret," Cassie said. "Do you see how it gets out of hand when you do?"

Rachel nodded slowly. "I'm sorry. What she said hurt. She was really mean about you and she doesn't even KNOW you and it doesn't make sense."

Shelby nodded. "Some people don't understand our family, Rachel, you know that. I know it's hard and I'm so sorry you're getting part of the heat for all of this. I know it isn't fair, but we can't let it get to us, okay?"

Rachel nodded again, wiping up her tears with her sleeve. "I'm sorry mommy," her voice broke.

"Oh, Rachel," Shelby pulled her into a tight hug. "It's okay. I know you were just trying to defend Mama and me. Thank you for loving us so much and trying to defend us. But next time you have to just ignore it, okay?"

Rachel sniffed and moved over to hug Cassie and sit on her lap. "There's gonna be a next time?" she asked, scared.

Cass nodded. "I'm afraid so, Rach. But you just have to straighten your back and stick up your head and make it seem like they're not bothering you, even if they are. You're a good little actress, I know you've got it in you."

This made Rachel smile, a little. Then her earlier question came back in her mind. She took a deep breath before saying,

"Do I have a daddy?"

Shelby and Cassie's eyebrows skyrocketed. They were most definitely not expecting this question on this day. Shelby bit her lip and Rachel continued,

"Because I know I couldn't have been born without a daddy. So who is he?"

Cassie sighed. Rachel had always been an inquisitive little girl and she was honestly shocked that the question hadn't been brought up sooner.

"Well," she said. "You actually have 2 daddies, too."

Rachel dropped her jaw. "I do?"

"Uh huh. Mommy and I needed some help making you, and they both wanted to help, so their DNA got mixed with Mommy's and Mommy had you." Cassie explained with as little detail as she possibly could.

Shelby cuddled up next to both of them as Rachel asked,

"Have they ever seen me?"

"We send them pictures every month," Shelby nodded with a small smile. This made Rachel smile a little bit. It was better than she had imagined-she had 2 daddies AND 2 mommies. It was pretty cool, and she didn't care WHAT Veronica Sanchez had to say about it. Veronica Sanchez wasn't worth the time of day.

"Can I ever meet them?" Rachel wondered.

Cass and Shelby exchanged a small smile.

"They live in Ohio, Rach," Cassie informed her. "And they're really really busy with work a lot."

"But," Shelby added, wrapping her arm around Cassie. Rachel moved so that she was sitting on both mommies' laps. "Maybe we could get them up here for a weekend so they can see you sometime. Does that sound like it might be okay?"

Rachel nodded. That sounded perfectly okay to her. "I love both of you," she informed them happily. "And I don't care what Veronica says-I think you're the best mommies ever."

Cassandra and Shelby's hearts melted and they realized, not for the first time, what an incredible child they were raising. They hugged her tightly.

"We love you too, Rachel," Shelby told her.

"SOOOO much."

"And don't let anybody ever hurt you with their vicious words, okay, panda-boo?"

"Because they aren't worth it."

"I know," Rachel smiled.


	15. Biological Pt2

**Guest: I think you should do more with this (Referring to Biological), maybe from Shelby's side where she feels that Cassie isn't doing enough so they talk about their insecurities.**

**This was heartbreaking but necessary. Thank you so much! **

**If you have any more, let me know.**

**With love always, hayleynymphadora**

* * *

**Biological Pt.2**

**Shelby:**

Rachel's fussy and I hand her over to Cassandra. Cassie beams as she looks down at our precious little newborn. You can tell just by her smile how much she adores our daughter. Which is good-I was admittedly a bit concerned about how she would feel about having a baby with me. She's not really a baby kind of person. Or a kid kind of person. Hell, Cassie's not really an anybody kind of person...besides of course, me.

But even as I think that, I realize how long it's been since we've actually talked about...anything. We're partners. Best friends. And we never talk anymore. I know it's not the baby that's the reason for our walls being up. Even if Rachel wasn't a part of the picture, Cassie doesn't talk much about her feelings and nor do I. It was always something that amused me about our relationship-I thought opposites were supposed to attract, but here we were, definitely not opposites, and completely in love.

I smile over at her and she smiles back. That's when I catch it, and not for the first time. Her smile is fake-fleeting. Her eyes, though still loving towards Rachel, turn sad. Rachel cries out louder. Cass bounces her and cuddles her and does everything she possibly could try before sighing and handing her back to me.

"She wants you," there's that fake smile again. I dry swallow and take Rachel, cooing at her and soothing her. She starts to settle down and Cassie walks out of the room.

I think I might be starting to understand it.

You see because Cassie hasn't been doing much with Rachel. She'll hold her like this for a bit, and then gives her back to me. She always gives her back looking more depressed than before. I've always found this odd—if she's sad giving her back to me why doesn't she just keep her in her arms?

Once I have Rachel finally lying down and asleep, I cross my arms over my chest and look around the nursery. We put a lot of thought into this nursery, Cassie and me. We had been so excited at the time. So full of life. So in love with each other. About a week after Rachel was born, we started drifting.

I keep telling myself it's just the stress of the baby and everything. Hormones raging and all that jazz. But now I'm starting to think that's not it.

I know how much Cassie loves Rachel. I can see it in her eyes. In her excited expression whenever she holds her. I can tell by her dedication-before I got pregnant she was an alcoholic. Now she's almost a year sober. I know for a fact that wasn't an easy thing for her to do-hell, I lived through it to, it just didn't hurt me as badly as I know it hurt her-as I can see that it still does, at times.

She's had a hard life, my Cassie. She has serious issues with trust and commitment, which was why I was so surprised she said she'd raise Rachel with me to begin with. Maybe that's it-maybe she's having second thoughts. God, I hope not.

Slowly, I make my way out of the nursery. I look around the apartment for Cass but she's nowhere to be found. Finally, I check our bedroom. She's laying on the bed wearing a pair of sweats and a grey t shirt, reading.

It's ten o'clock on a Friday night, and Cassandra July is reading.

I strip and change into comfy clothes and join her on the bed, cross legged, facing her. She didn't even look up and stare at me while I was changing-something that's usually a favorite pass time of hers. I'm not saying I have a perfect body that she should always want to stare at, I'm just saying that any other time she would have.

"Are you having second thoughts about Rachel?" I just come right out and say it. I've never been one to beat around the bush, and Cassie knows this.

She looks up slowly and double blinks at me. She folds the corner of the book she was reading and puts it on the side table next to her before mimicking my position and facing me. "No," she answers simply. She knows she's not going to get away with such a short answer. "No, of course not..."

"Then what's wrong?" I ask her, pleading, begging for an answer. I tilt my head and take her knees in my hands. I'm asking for a solution, to fix her obvious pain. I need us to be okay again. I need her to be happy.

"Nothing's wrong, baby," Cassie says, trying to seem genuine. I can see through her fleeting smile now. I can see the glimmer of pain in her eyes.

"Don't you dare lie to me, Cassandra July," I dead pan. "I know you better than that. Please talk to me."

Cassie takes in a deep breath before letting it out very _very_ slowly. "She's yours."

She's mine? What does this mean? That she doesn't want her anymore? That she thinks she's only mine? "What do you mean?"

Cassie takes my hands in hers, resting them on her knees. "I mean, she's yours. She's your daughter. She always wants _you_. She only wants _you_. I'm just Mommy's girlfriend, Cassie. I'm fun for a second and then she wants her real mommy again. I'm not her mother." tears form in her eyes and I swallow, slowly. Cassandra never cries. She's always thought she was above tears. "I can't just pretend to be her mother, it doesn't work like that."

"It isn't pretending," I try to soothe her, inching closer to her until I'm in her lap, our legs intertwined. I haven't let go of her hands. I kiss a tear off of her cheek. "Cassie, baby, Rachel loves you. She's just a newborn, you can't possibly think I'm her favorite. She doesn't pick favorites, she just eats and sleeps and cries."

"She cries when she's in my arms, not yours. I can't feed her, so fifty percent of the time I'm not sure why I'm even in the same room as her-I can't give her what she wants. I can see the connection she has with you-that motherly bond-she doesn't have that with me. She never will. I'm just the girlfriend."

"Please, stop saying that," I whisper, her broken voice shattering my heart. Her tears make me want to hold her in my arms forever and never let her go.

Anyone who didn't know her the way that I do would be shocked-terrified, probably, at Cassandra's tears-at her fragile and vulnerable state. Who knew that Hard Ass July actually had *gasp* feelings? Who knew that she was actually human?

The problem is that I knew, and I was so wrapped up in Rachel and getting rest that I didn't notice her feelings until now. I had no idea she felt this way. This is why we need to communicate more-talk more.

"You are so much more than just the girlfriend, Cassie," I tell her with tears of my own starting to form as she breaks down in my arms. She's tried to hold back these tears for too long-they break free and splash down her face and her body shakes violently as she sobs. "You're my best friend, my lover, my savior, my everything. You're Rachel's mother, her leader, her guide, her world. Neither one of us would ever make it without you. Please understand how important you are."

Cassie tries to wipe her tears with her sleeve but can't get her face dry-they're falling too fast.

"Come here," I hold her in my arms and she shudders and sobs. Her heart slams against her chest, powerfully, quickly. She's never thought she was worth it, when it came to anything. She never thought she was good enough. She was always trying to step up her game. Her parents didn't help. Neither did the Crazy July incident. But now we're a family. How could I ever prove to her that she's so much more than what she thinks she is?

I pull her face back, lightly, caressing it in my hands. Gently, I kiss away a few of her tears. She tries to take deep breaths but I can see her struggling with it. My lips find hers and we melt against each other. For a moment, everything feels fixed. But I know it's never that easy.

I take my lips away from hers and pull my face back only enough to speak. My lips brush against hers and I taste the salt from her tears as I say, "Rachel loves you." I press my forehead up against hers and she leans in to kiss me again. "I love you," I tell her.

This moment is so intimate. So raw. So emotional.

We both see the world with this fierce theatricality and I know that she can feel the dramatic change between us when her lips brush against mine while she responds, "I love you, too."

"You matter, Cassie," I promise her like I did when we were teenagers. When I found her in her bedroom, her knuckles bloody from punching the brick wall after her parents had yelled at her for not doing well enough. "You're important." I say, kissing her again and pulling her closer. I remind her she's important like I did when we were younger. When she would sneak into my bedroom in the middle of the night and tell me she was going to run away-because she didn't think anybody wanted her besides me. And sometimes she even questioned that. "You are loved."

I'm not sure how much she believes me, yet. But damn it all, she will. If it's the last thing I do, she will believe how important and loved she truly is.


	16. Pump

**Kikilia14: Maybe Shelby should pump so Cassie can feed Rachel as well?**

**So i'm not sure if this was a legitimate prompt but I treated it like one. xD Lol thank you so much.**

**All of you, thank you for the prompts. This story would be non-****existent****without all of you and all of these great prompts would've never been written. So I can't thank you enough because this is truly a beautiful thing. :) **

**That being said, don't be shy with the prompts, okay? lol I love them and I love you all and I hope you love reading as much as I love writing.**

**I have a question for all of you- a guest proposed that Rachel should have a little sister. I don't know if I want to do that or not-i see upsides and downsides, but since you are all an important part of this writing process, would you tell me what you think?**

**So i guess i'll leave it up to a vote. **

**Vote yes or no for Rachel to have a little sister in the reviews or PM me and let me know?**

**Thank you so much! I'm just so undecided about it and thought i'd ask you all what you want to read, you know?**

**With love always, hayleynymphadora**

* * *

**Pump**

**Shelby:**

"Cassie, can you come here?" I yell over Rachel's yelling. It's almost as if i'm competing with her. Who can be the loudest screamer? Cassie doesn't respond which means she didn't hear me. Guess Rachel wins. "Cassie!"

She practically jogs out towards me. "Yeah?"

I can't wait to see her reaction to this. Last week she was very upset because she couldn't feed Rachel and didn't have much of a connection to her. So I went out and bought a breast pump. I hold the bottle of breast milk out towards her.

"Do you want to feed her?" I ask, excited but a bit hesitant. What if she just freaks out? Cassie's sort of known to do that. And she's been really tired and moody recently. Almost as if we're sharing my excessive hormones.

Her eyes widen and lighten. She straightens her shoulders and looks at me like i'm an angel sent from above that just saved her from the path to hell. I don't know how accurate that really is, but if this makes her happy then I'll gladly do it again.

"Really?" she asks, walking towards me and taking the bottle, slowly.

"Really."

She stares at the bottle and studies it. "Is it...formula?"

"No, I used a pump," I explain.

Cass raises an eyebrow. "Ow?"

I shrug and laugh, lightly. "Not really. Here," I hand her Rachel and Cass looks jubilant.

"Hey, Rach," she says softly. "Are you going to like me now?"

That was heartbreaking.

She places the nipple of the bottle in Rachel's mouth and our daughter stops her fussing immediately, her wide brown eyes looking up at Cassie thankfully. Cass lets out a happy laugh and kisses the top of Rachel's forehead.

I'm glad I could make her feel like she's a part of this. Finally apart of our family unit. Finally someone Rachel wants to be around.

Of course, Rachel's always been around her and she's always been a part of the family, but now if I can make her feel like it...

She grins at me and says, "Thank you."

And I feel like I just made her life. I kiss her cheek and leave her to be with Rachel, alone. Just her and Rachel.

I know that after all this time away from her, it's what they need.


	17. Sleepover

**Bookworm0485: Rachel's 1****st**** sleepover at a friend's house. It can be a success or she can want to go home in the middle of the night.**

**A/N: Rachel is 6, and I decided that the sleepover ends up being a success.**

**And I figured since Rachel was having a sleepover, Shelby and Cassie could have some fun time alone, too. It's not a smut fic, though. Just some romance and fluff between Shelandra while Rachel is away from home. This will likely be a longer chapter, so I can show both stories. Hope you like it! Tell me what you think of it :)**

**Sleepover**

"Can we go nowww?" Rachel begged Shelby, bouncing up and down. She was excited—her best friend Santana was having a sleepover for her birthday and she only invited Rachel. It made Rachel feel super special, plus, it would be her very first night away from home. (Besides of course when they slept over at Cassie's house a couple of times, which totally didn't count because Cassie was her Mama).

"One minute, Rachel," Shelby said calmly, patiently. Rachel had been begging her to go since seven in the morning (when she ran into her and Cassie's bedroom, jumped on the bed and shook them awake), but she had spoken to Santana's mother and wasn't taking Rachel over there until 4. It was 3:30.

Cassie laughed and rubbed Shelby's arm sneakily. She had plans of her own, once Rachel was out of the house. She loved Rachel more than she loved life—she and Shelby both did—but they both agreed that a night alone might do them some good. They were going to go out somewhere, but it WAS Rachel's first sleepover, so what if she got scared and had to come home? They decided to have a sleepover of their own. An uninterrupted one.

Nobody actually sleeps at sleepovers, anyways.

Cassandra's touch gave Shelby shivers of anticipation. She slid away from her touch and spoke to Rachel. "Do you have everything ready to go?"

Rachel nodded excitedly. "Yep! I have my pillow and my blanket and my bag of my clothes and I have CD's so we can sing and dance and paper so we can draw and—"

"Okay, baby," Shelby laughed lightly. "Alright. Let's get you over there, okay?"

"Okay!"

Cassie kissed Shelby goodbye and said, "I'm going to stay here and get things ready."

Shelby raised an eyebrow at her. _Get what ready….? _She gave her a look that said, _Don't do anything reckless…_ and Cassie shrugged innocently before picking Rachel up and smothering her cheek in kisses.

"Be GOOD munchkin, okay?" she spun her in circles and made Rachel laugh.

"I WILL, Mamaaa…" she giggled. Cassie kissed her again, and said,

"If you get scared you can come home, okay? Mommy or I will come and get you."

"I'm not gonna get scared, Mama," Rachel said matter-of-factly. Cassie laughed.

"Well fine then! But if you do…" she sing-songed, helping Rachel put her back pack on her back.

"But I won't," Rachel sing-songed back.

With a shake of her head and a smile, Cassie hugged Rachel another time and said, "I love you, Rach."

"I love you too, Mama," she promised, hugging her back tightly.

"Have fun, okay?"

"Okay!"

Shelby kissed Cassie's cheek as she led Rachel out the front door. "No funny business," she told her girlfriend.

"Me? Why I never…"

After shooting her lover a condescending look, she left Cassie alone in the apartment. Immediately, Cassie got to work. She knew she had a half an hour at best. Santana didn't live far away.

She hopped up onto the cupboard and reached way in the back, where she had a bottle of sparkling cider (damn her sober ways for making her feel like a 12 year old when she bought it). She got out wine glasses for it anyways, because it seemed more romantic.

Cass and Shelby hadn't had a truly romantic night in years. They had always had to stay quiet because Rachel was in the room next door, or they couldn't be truly intimate and cuddly with each other because they didn't want to be too PDA in front of Rachel, and what if she walked in? Rachel was famous for just barging through doors without knocking on them.

True, Shelby was more romantic than Cassie was, but Cassie was ready to prove to her that she still had it. She could still be romantic, and if Rachel wasn't going to be home, she had the opportunity to.

It wasn't that she was celebrating the fact that her daughter was gone for the night. She knew she would miss Rachel and she loved Rachel so much.

But she also really missed being seductive with Shelby. And Shelby had admitted that she really missed it, too.

She poured two glasses of the cider and put them on the table in front of the couch, on coasters, of course, or else Shelby would flip. After which, she went into the kitchen and got out the cookbook. Cassandra July did not cook. But damn it, she could try, right? She and Shelby had been dying to try this soup recipe but never had because they knew Rachel wouldn't eat it. She started to follow the recipe, knowing she was running out of time. While she waited for the water to boil, she ran to the bedroom and got into the closet, pulling the bouquet of roses (that were already trimmed and in a vase) out of the back. She had bought them that morning, when she had actually woken up before Shelby (big surprise because Cassie wasn't about waking up before the sun did) and bought them and put them in the closet before getting back in bed and pretending that Rachel as the one to wake her an hour later. She wanted tonight to be special. She missed being special with Shelby.

Cass went back out to the kitchen to check on her water. It was not yet boiling.

She went into the living room and put on some music, swaying her hips around and dancing to it while she worked. She missed DANCING with Shelby. The two of them hadn't really thought about how much alone time they used to spend together before they had Rachel.

Five minutes later and she was successfully (so far) making the soup.

It caught on fire.

"HOW THE HELL?!" she turned the stove off and practically dove for the fire extinguisher. She extinguished the fire and, in her haste, knocked the pot off of the stove. She jumped up onto a chair before it could hit her, practically topping the table over when she did. "AHH! SON OF A—YOU SEE THIS IS WHY YOU DON'T LET ME NEAR THE FUCKING STOVE, SHELBY!"

She sighed, she knew it wasn't Shelby's fault that she was a clumsy dancer that couldn't cook. Well, she wasn't ALWAYS clumsy—only when it came to cooking. She put her head in her hands and let out a long, slow breath. Shelby would be home in ten minutes and her kitchen was a mess. This was NOT what she had in mind.

. . .

"Santana!" Rachel jumped up and down excitedly and hugged her best friend. "Happy birthday!" she held out Santana's present to her.

"Hey Rachel!" Santana grinned, taking her present after hugging her best friend back. "Thank you!"

Santana's mom gave Shelby a thankful look. "You didn't have to do that—"

"Yes we did, don't worry about it," Shelby smiled. "It was Cassie's idea. She thought Santana might like some free dance lessons."

"REALLY?!" Santana exclaimed. "KURT GET OUT HERE!"

Kurt was going to spend most of the night with them, then go home later on. His dad said he could come over for a while until he got out of work, but it was family night.

Kurt rushed up behind Santana, "What?" he wondered excitedly. He fixed his shirt back into place—when he was running it had gone askew.

Santana opened up the box to find a pair of pink ballet shoes—the professional ones that you tie with ribbons. She gasped and grinned, running up against Shelby with a grin and hugging her tightly. "Thank you!"

Shelby giggled at the little—now she was seven, wow—seven-year-old's excitement. "You're welcome, sweetie," she said.

San's mom, Maribel, grinned so thankfully at Shelby. She had been wanting to get Santana ballet slippers and dance lessons—the girl was talented—but couldn't afford it. Cassandra and Shelby would have none of that—if a child was talented then they deserved the lessons they wanted, so they decided together that buying her ballet slippers and some free dance lessons were definitely in order. It was the least they could do; Santana was such a good friend to Rachel.

"Would you like to stay for a cup of tea?" Maribel asked her. "I know you and Cassandra must have plans for dinner or something, but would a tea be okay?"

Knowing that Cassie probably wanted more time to "get ready" (whatever the hell that meant, Shelby's stomach flipped in curiosity) so she nodded. "Sure," smiled. "Just let me text Cassie and tell her."

Maribel smiled. "I'll go put the kettle on," she kissed the top of Santana's head. "Go have fun with your friends, Santana, but ser segura, be safe, okay?" she said. "Feliz cumpleaños."

"Gracias mama," Santana said, running off after Rachel and Kurt, towards her bedroom.

Shelby got her phone out and texted Cass, _I'm staying for a cup of tea, and then I'll be home and all yours, okay? Twenty minutes tops. Oh and Santana LOVES the slippers._

. . .

Cassie's phone went off and she groaned. She jumped from chair to chair to get over to the living room and retrieve it. She realized it was just a text. After reading it she fist pumped the air.

"YES."

She wrote back,

_Okay, have fun, don't be too long ;)_

On the inside she was celebrating. She had an extra 20 minutes! 20 whole minutes!

She called the Chinese place and ordered for them. He would deliver in 20 minutes, and it would take Shelby like 10 to get home. Perfect. Cass headed to the bathroom and showered and shaved (something she knew Shelby had tried to secretly do earlier but failed on the secrecy part). She got out and dried off and got dressed. She had already cleaned up most of the mess in the kitchen. It was off the floor at least, and most MOST of the foam from the fire extinguisher had been taken care of. The pot of soup sat in the sink—she'd take care of it later.

The Chinese guy came and she paid him and got out plates and started arranging everything perfectly. She couldn't cook but she could sure as hell make take out Chinese look like a five star meal. So maybe the night wasn't ruined because she couldn't make them soup. She still wanted to know how the hell it caught on fire, but whatever. At least now they had dinner.

Shelby would be home soon. Cassandra shivered and turned the stereo up.

. . .

"Rachel, honey, Mommy's going home okay?' Shelby called out to her daughter. Before she knew it, Rachel crashed into her legs with a giant hug.

"I love you, Mommy." She said.

"I love you too, munchkin," she gave her a kiss. "Have fun okay?"

Rachel ran back off to play with Santana and Kurt.

When Shelby got back to the apartment, she put her hand over her heart. A vase of roses was on the table along with a really good looking dinner and glasses of…she hoped for Cassie's sake that wasn't champagne. Cassie had music playing and was swaying her hips, dancing around the room. Shelby grinned, surprised.

"You did all this?" she asked.

Cass spun around and saw her, grinning wildly and pulling her into a deep passionate kiss. "Do you like it?"

Shelby kissed her back. "I love it." She hugged Cassie tightly—she'd missed this embrace, this closeness, where they didn't have to be worried about getting carried away in case Rachel might have been watching. She looked over Cassie's shoulder and saw her kitchen, confused.

She laughed. "What the hell did you do to my kitchen?"

Cassie bit her lip and damn, it was sexy.

"Um, well I tried to make us soup…"

Shelby slowly glanced over at dinner, which was Chinese, then looked back at Cassie. Her heart exploded at the fact that Cassandra, who had sworn of kitchens forever and for a good reason, had tried to make her a meal. She suppressed a grin.

"TRIED." Cass said, over exaggerating the word. Shelby laughed at her and placed another kiss on her cheek.

"It's okay, sweetheart," she grinned. "I appreciate the gesture."

"Well good," Cass grinned, and picked her up, spinning her around. "I'm glad."

. . .

"Who says YOU get to be Barbra?" Kurt complained to Rachel.

Rachel threw a scarf over her shoulder and looked in Santana's mirror and tilted her chin just the right way before saying, "Hello, Gorgeous."

"No fair! I can be Barbra too," Kurt stomped his foot. Why did Rachel always get the fun songs?

"Okay, okay, but you're a boy!" Santana said.

Kurt stuck his tongue out. "I can still sing Barbra!"

"Then let's sing together!" Rachel said, excitedly.

They all broke into a chorus of I'm the Greatest Star and hit each other with pillows and laughed and giggled. "I'm the greatest star!" Rachel laughed, hitting Kurt with a pillow.

"Oof!" Kurt fell over and grabbed Rachel's ankle, making her fall down onto a pile of blankets. "No, I am!" he hit her with a pillow. Santana grabbed a pillow and got Kurt from behind.

"Nobody hits my Rachel with a pillow!" Santana giggled, tackling Kurt to the ground. The girls ganged up on Kurt and Kurt stuck his tongue out.

"No fair you guys!" he tried to get them back and succeeded in knocking Santana over. Their games continued like this for most of the night.

. . .

"Dinner was great, Cassie, even if you didn't make it," Shelby let her know with grin. "Is this…?" she pointed to the drink in front of her.

"Sparkling cider," Cassie mumbled, looking down at her hands. It felt foolish NOW.

Shelby reached over and took Cassie's face in her hands, kissing her forehead, then her cheeks, then her nose, then her lips. "I'm so proud of you." Shelby didn't make her feel so foolish anymore.

Biting Cassie's lower lip lightly, Shelby pushed her back onto the couch and melted into her. God how she'd missed this. This intimacy, this touch, this feel. Cassie moaned and Shelby nearly swooned because of it. She ran her hands through Cassandra's long blonde hair and their legs wrapped together. Shelby broke away just long enough to say, "Maybe we should—"

"Mmhmm."

. . .

Santana walked down the hallway like a runway, posing for a minute near the end of it before spinning around and sashaying her hips as she walked back.

Kurt and Rachel cheered for her and held up their fingers to say the outfit she was wearing earned a 10. They loved playing fashion show.

Afterwards, Rachel helped Santana lace her ballet slippers and she danced around the house with Rachel and Kurt, giggling and twirling in circles. "I can't wait for your Mama to teach me how to dance better, Rachel."

"Well I think you dance great without Mama teaching you," Rachel said matter-of-factly.

"You could be a star, Santana," Kurt flashed a dazzling smile.

"I know," Santana beamed. "But it'll still be fun to take lessons." She shrugged.

. . .

Cassie and Shelby laid side by side in their bed, looking into each other's eyes, lovingly. Cassie stroked Shelby's arm softly, lovingly. Their feet intertwined and Shelby giggled at Cassandra's touch—so soft it tickled. Cass moved her touch to Shelby's neck and placed a warm kiss there. Shelby closed her eyes and sighed and Cass moved so that she was straddling Shelby and they both laughed.

"I'm glad we don't have to worry about Rachel just walking in here," Shelby whispered.

"That would be bad," Cassie giggled and kissed Shelby's neck again.

"Mmm. Yes, it would." They laid there for a minute, comfortable, before Cass whispered, in wonder,

"Do you think Rachel's okay?"

Shelby pressed her lips together and laid her head back on the pillow as Cassie moved the hair away from her neck. "I think she would've called if she wasn't." she turned her head and checked the time. "I guess we'll know soon—it's about time they went to bed. She's independent, she'll be okay."

Cass sucked on her earlobe and Shelby let out a gasp. Cassie giggled. "Are YOU going to be okay?" she asked.

Shelby shook her head softly. "I don't know."

"Do I need to make it okay?"

With a laugh, Shelby let Cassie do what Cassie's do best.

. . .

It was time for little girls to get some rest. Kurt had gone home a few hours ago and since then, Santana and Rachel had been eating popcorn in Santana's room, laying on her bed and watching movies. Rachel had fallen asleep, soundly and close to Santana. Santana noticed her slumber and smiled lightly. She reached over and kissed Rachel on the cheek. "Good night, Rach," she smiled.

"Happy birthday, Santana," Rachel mumbled, still half awake. Santana laughed and turned her TV off, cuddling up next to Rachel and pulling the blankets over them.

When they woke up, it was 9:30 in the morning. Rachel gasped—she had slept in! Usually she woke up around 7 or 8. She wondered if it was probably because they had stayed up so late. But she had had so much fun over at Santana's that she almost didn't want to leave. But she did miss her Mommy and her Mama. They ate breakfast and Santana hugged Rachel tightly.

"I don't want you to go," she admitted. "I had the best birthday ever."

"I don't want to go either, San," Rachel said.

Maribel smiled at their friendship and said, "You girls have until 12, so you can go play again if you want."

"Yay!" Rachel cheered. "You want to play performance? I can sing and you can dance!"

"Okay!" Santana took Rachel's hand and dragged her to the living room. She put her ballet slippers back on and Rachel sang for her.

. . .

The light shed through the bedroom window, illuminating Cassandra's gorgeous face…and waking her up.

She groaned. "No. The light burns, Shelby, make it go away." She grumbled.

Shelby laughed and moved so that she was on top of Cassie.

Cass raised her eyebrows. "So forward, so early?" she asked.

Shelby laughed again and moved off of her, on the other side of the bed. She pulled the shade down and gave Cassandra a condescending look. "Someone's suggestive," she said.

Cass looked her up and down, approvingly. "Hard not to be when someone's that beautiful."

"Oh," Shelby got back in bed and kissed Cassie good morning. "You're too good to me."

"I'm not good enough to you," Cass muttered, kissing her back.

"You're more than I deserve—"

"You deserve so much more—"

"Stop it,"

"Only if you do."

"I'm being _romantic,_" Shelby laughed, getting out of bed again. Cassandra sat up in protest.

"Where are you going?"

Shelby smirked and raised an eyebrow. "Shower. You want to come with me?"

A shiver of excitement ran through Cassandra's body. "Please tell me that was a formal invitation."

"You'd better hurry before I change my mind."

Cass jumped out of bed.

. . .

"Rachel, your mommies are here," Maribel called out to the girls. Rachel pouted out her lower lip and hugged Santana tightly as she had to go towards her mommies.

"Did you have fun, sweetheart?" Cassie asked her, holding Shelby's hand and hugging Rachel.

"Yeah," Rachel grinned. "Did you and Mommy?"

The two mothers exchanged a glance and Shelby blushed.

"Yes, we did," Cass let her know.

"Can Santana come sleepover at our house now?" Rachel asked, bouncing up and down excitedly.

Shelby let out a light laugh. "You're just now leaving _her_ house!" She said, running a hand down Rachel's hair. "How about next weekend?" she said it like a question and looked up at Maribel for approval.

Maribel smiled. "Sounds fine with me."

"And I can start giving Santana those dance lessons," Cass said with a grin.

"For really?" Santana asked, her eyes full of hope, looking up at Cassandra. Cass smiled. She usually wasn't the best with kids, but she liked Santana's spunk.

"For really."

Santana grinned and hugged Cassie before hugging Rachel. "I love you Rachel!" she said. "I'll see you next weekend!"

"Okay!" Rachel hugged her back. "I love you too!"  
"We're glad you had fun, Rach," Shelby told her on her way home. "See? Sleepovers aren't too scary."

It sort of upset Shelby and Cassie that Rachel hadn't even gotten a little bit homesick. It meant their little girl was growing up. SO fast.

Rachel didn't tell her mommies that at some point in the middle of the night she felt a little homesick, but Santana had kept her company, and she didn't really want to leave her. All in all, she had had a great time, and absolutely couldn't wait to do it again.

And Cassandra and Shelby had reconnected and everything was great.


	18. Only Child

**Guest Prompt: Rachel should have a little sister! So cute!**

**A/N: After much thought, I decided that Rachel should be an only child. She's just so…she's such a diva and she needs all the spotlight on her and that's just how Rachel is and I'm not sure a younger sibling would be good for her. But, I was doing a character study last night and re-watched all Glee episodes with Shelby or Cassandra and took notes, and was reminded of something important that I'm about to pull into play with this chapter. I had to do a lot of research for this chapter, and it will likely be long, but I hope you like it anyways! Tell me what you think!**

**Also, sorry these sometimes take so long. I've been super busy recently with a summer job. So, just, you know, stay with me patiently. You're the best!**

**love always, hayley**

* * *

**Only Child**

Cassie and Shelby laid in bed next to each other, face to face, late one night. They had been talking for hours (something it felt like they were able to do more and more of now that Rachel was getting older—nine years old now—and didn't constantly need their attention). But they both agreed that no matter how chaotic things got, they actually missed it. They missed the chaos. They were discussing having another child.

"How do you think Rachel would feel about it though?" Cassie wondered, pulling closer to Shelby as they talked.

Shelby bit her lip. "I'm…not sure…" it was a good point. "Maybe she'd like it? We'll talk to her about it when the time comes."

"When's the time going to come, Shelbs? I mean…we're not getting any younger."

This made Shelby smirk. "Cassandra July, are you calling us _old_?" she demanded of her wife. It had been a year since they got married, but Shelby still got that shiver of happiness and would never get used to hearing or thinking about the fact that Cassandra was her wife.

"Old? Of course not. But we're not wide eyed little ingénues anymore either, you know?"

"Yeah," Shelby whispered as it started daunting on her. They were getting older, weren't they? Even if they might not always act like it. "Well then," she smiled and took Cassie's hands in hers. "I really would like another child. That is, if you're as committed as I am."

"Was that supposed to be offensive as it sounded?" Cassie asked.

Shelby shook her head and Cass gave a soft smile. "Of course I want to have another child with you. Let's do it," her smile widened and Shelby pressed her lips together.

"I don't think that's how it works with us," she teased. Cass smacked her playfully.

"You know that isn't what I meant."

"I know," Shelby laughed. "I know."

After a small silence of just holding each other and enjoying the each other's company, Shelby whispered, "Which one of us is going to carry?"

Cassandra gave it some thought before volunteering, "Well you did it last time. I could carry this time around."

Shelby raised an eyebrow. She couldn't image a pregnant Cassandra and wasn't sure she could deal with the meltdowns that were bound to happen. Besides, Cassie's job was their main income and they would need the money. She explained the job thing and added, "Since I work mostly at home, I won't have to take any time off. I wouldn't mind carrying again."

With a shake of her head and a smile, Cass said, "What would I do without you?" After which she added, "_You _just don't want to deal with my hormones."

This made Shelby laugh. "That too. But you need to dance to live. Besides, it'll ruin those gorgeous abs of yours," as she said this she pulled her face down to Cassandra's abs and placed systematic kisses down them. Cass let out a breath of pleasure.

"Okay. If you want to carry again you can."

"I do," Shelby smiled against Cassandra's stomach and Cass smiled back.

"So we'll talk to Rachel tomorrow," Cass mumbled as Shelby continued to trail kisses.

"Tomorrow."

"And what do we do tonight?" Cassandra's voice was low, slow, and sultry.

"Mmm."

. . .

"Rachel! Can you come in here for a minute?" Shelby called their daughter out to the kitchen counter and sighed. Their Rachel was getting so big. And soon she was going to be an older sister. Where had the time gone?

She was dressed in a skirt and a navy blue sweater, and had a Barbra CD in her hands. "Am I in trouble? I'm trying to learn Barbra's repertoire…"

Cassie laughed and shook her head at Rachel' constant need to work. She was just as persistent as both mothers combined. That kind of dedication could be dangerous. "No, Rach, you're not in trouble, we just wanted to talk to you for a minute."

Rachel saw the seriousness on both mothers' faces and dry swallowed. "O-kayyy…" _If I'm not in trouble then what happened? Did someone die?! Did BARBRA die?! Oh god…_

"Okay, Rachel," Shelby and Cassie sat across from Rachel at the island/counter thing they usually ate at. "We wanted to know your opinion about something."

"Alright," Rachel calmed down a bit. No one was dead. She put her hands out in front of her and folded them on the countertop. "Shoot."

"Okay," Cassie smiled and took Shelby's hand. "We wanted to know what you might think about having a little sibling."

For a minute Rachel didn't speak and Shelby and Cassie thought their hearts had stopped beating. Was she going to totally reject it? Was this going to be a bigger problem than they thought it would be?

Finally, Rachel smiled, "Do I get to help train him or her to be a Broadway star too?"

Shelby let out a breath she wasn't aware she was holding and Cassandra let out a laugh. Of course that's what Rachel would be worried about. She continued,

"I mean, as long as they don't take away ALL my spotlight. A little sibling would be nice." She grinned.

"Well if he or she is into Broadway, we'll definitely consider letting you help train him or her, okay?" Shelby smiled at her.

"Consider?!"

Cassie laughed again. Rachel always seemed to make her laugh. She was so out there—so unexpected with her opinions and decisions. "So is this a yes that we're getting from you?"

"Yes," Rachel grinned. "Totally."

"That's amazing, sweetheart, thank you," Shelby hugged her tightly and Cassie joined the whole group hug ordeal. "You'll always be our firstborn though, okay? We're never going to forget about you or neglect you or anything, I swear."

"I know," Rachel smiled cheekily not unlike something Cassandra would do. "I'm too lovable to ignore."

Shelby smirked and Cassie tousled Rachel's hair. "Someone's cocky,"

"Can I go continue rehearsing now?" Rachel asked after the group hug was over.

"Well, actually, your Mom and I have an appointment with the doctor so we can see about getting Mom pregnant…" Cassie started slowly. "It's in a half an hour. You can come with us, if you want, or we can see if we can drop you off at Santana's? We'll likely be gone for hours…"

Rachel put her finger to her chin in fake contemplation. She really didn't want to sit in an office and listen to them discuss pregnancy and everything for hours and hours. Besides, any excuse to go and stay with Santana. "Can I stay the night over there?"

With a nod, Shelby said, "As long as it's alright with Maribel, I don't see why not."

"Awesome!" Rachel jumped up and down. "I'm going to go call Santana!"

She ran off towards the living room for the home phone. Shelby took a deep breath and looked at Cassandra. Cass got a glass down from the cupboard and filled it with water, taking a drink. "Are you ready for this, Shelbs?" she asked, a bit concerned. "We don't have to do this right away if you're not comfortable with it—"

"I'm completely comfortable with it," Shelby promised. "Really. I'm ready."

Cass looked up and into her lover's deep green eyes, searching for a sign. "Are you sure?"

Shelby looked at her back, lovingly. "Positive," she promised. "It's about time we had another baby, Cassie."

. . .

They had dropped Rachel off at Santana's, (she was, in fact, staying the night) and Shelby had gone through a series of tests to make sure that everything was good before moving on to step 2 of finding another donor and all that jazz. But the tests were necessary to make sure that pregnancy was a smart option at the time, or else all of the other work afterwards would be for nothing.

A few hours after her tests were complete, they were called back into the doctor's office and he shook their hands before they sat down to talk.

She had a grim look on her face, and Shelby didn't like it. Cass didn't like it very much either. She reached out next to her and took Shelby's hand, tightly. She had a feeling they weren't about to hear very good news. Shelby's heart pounded quickly and roughly in her chest—she was terrified. She cast a nervous look at Cassie and Cassie squeezed her hand, pressing her lips together to fight back tears for her Shelby. Based on the silence of the doctor, something was clearly not right.

Finally, after what seemed like years, the doctor stared down at Shelby's files before looking up at the two women sitting in front of her. She hated when she had to give news like this.

"There's not easy way to say this," she started.

_Oh dear god._

Shelby squeezed Cassandra's hand tighter as well as squeezing her eyes shut, trying to calm her pounding heart. After a moment she looked up, straightened her back, and tilted her head up, confidently. "Don't sugar coat it," she said, trying to sound strong. But her voice broke when she added, "What's wrong with me?"

Cassandra's heart shattered at her wife's voice. She didn't have a good feeling about this anymore. She almost wanted to just go home and pretend like nothing ever happened. Shelby could relate to the feeling.

The doctor spoke again, after an untimely dead silence. Usually, Cassandra and Shelby were comfortable with dramatic silence. Not this time. This time the silence felt fatal, and both women kept imagining worse case scenarios.

"You have cancerous cells in your endometrium."

Immediately, Shelby's strong walls broke down. Her eyes filled with tears and her heart felt like it had dropped to her stomach. "I…what?"

Cassie looked at Shelby and back at the doctor, confused and hurt and terrified. So she got defensive. "What the hell does that mean?" she demanded.

"Well," The doctor began to explain. "The endometrium is the tissue that lines your uterus. Our tests show that it's filled with cancer." She shook her head and looked at Shelby's chart. "If it were precancerous and not so spread around, we might've been able to get it out easier, but it's so far advanced…"

A tear slid down Shelby's cheek and Cassandra's voice broke as she begged to know, "What are you saying?" the two woman's grips on each other's hands could've easily broken their hands, but they were too far lost in the situation to notice.

Cancer. Her Shelby had cancer that was so far advanced they couldn't remove it. So….what could they do? There had to be something.

_Am I going to die?_ Shelby wondered, glancing frantically over at Cassandra. She tried to stay calm but her heart wouldn't let her. _I can't leave her and Rachel. I can't. It's not supposed to be this way. Please don't let me die. Please don't let me leave them. Don't make me leave my beautiful, beautiful daughter. Please don't make me die and leave my gorgeous wife all alone._

_THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING,_ Cassandra's mind screamed. _THIS ISN'T HAPPENING. THEY'RE DOCTORS, THERE HAS TO BE SOME WAY TO FIX THIS. SHE'S NOT GOING TO DIE. I WON'T LET HER. SHE'S TOUGH SHE'S A FIGHTER, SHE'S- she's mine. She's Shelby. She…she can't—_

The doctor continued to shake her head. "I mean, we could try chemo therapy or radiation, but the cancer is just so far advanced and I'm not sure we really have the time to do that. And it's so far spread that we can't just take the cancer out. Especially since it's the endometrium…"

"What's the other option?" Cassandra practically growled. She was not going to let this go without a fight.

Shelby was too shocked to speak. She stared, wide eyed at the doctor and listened. Just listened. She gripped her wife's hand and she listened.

The doctor set the file down and folded her hands in front of her. "I'm afraid our only option now is to do a total hysterectomy. This involves removing the entire uterus as well as the cervix."

Shelby's eyes widened, as did Cassandra's. That was definitely not what they had expected to hear.

"I know it's a lot to take in right now," the doctor said sympathetically.

_HOW?! _Cassie fumed in her mind. _You DON'T know. Is this happening to you?! Oh, god, Shelby….if this hysterectomy is a success then the cancer will be gone…that's what matters, right?_

The doctor continued. "Of course, this means that you'll never be able to bear a child again, but if we don't do the hysterectomy…"

She let the sentence hang in the air and the women understood, turning to look at each other. If she didn't get the hysterectomy…it was a death sentence.

"…the cancer will likely spread to other organs and could be very fatal. I don't think we can take that chance in this case." The doctor finished, letting all of the information sink in.

Now Cassandra had tears falling down her face. _Damn these tears. I need to be strong. I need to be strong for Shelby._

She pressed her thumb lightly to Shelby's cheek and wiped away one of her tears. "It's going to be okay, Shelby," she whispered to her wife, her lover, her best friend who was as of right that moment, technically dying of cancer. "You're going to be okay. I promise. I'm going to take care of you."

Shelby had no words. She simply nodded, softly.

"You need to get the hysterectomy," Cassie told her. "It's the best and only option for you, okay? I know it doesn't sound ideal, but it's better than…better than…" she couldn't even say it. She dry swallowed over the huge lump in her throat. "Shelby please nod so I know that you know what has to happen."

Shelby nodded slowly. _If I don't get this surgery, I die. Follow what Cassandra says. She won't let any more harm come to you. She's your savior. She's going to fix this._

She thought some more. _She shouldn't have to fix this._

Cassandra's mind was tearing her a part. _In sickness and in health._

She turned her head to the doctor and nodded. "Okay," she said. "What do we need to do?"

They were given a huge ass packet of papers to sign and go through. The surgery was scheduled for the next week, under the orders that they needed to work fast, before it continued to spread.

. . .

Shelby sat at the kitchen counter, her head in her hands as they read through the papers. Cassie sat across from her and watched as her wife tried to keep her composure. She couldn't imagine how hard this must be on Shelby, if it was so hard on her. Slowly, she reached out for Shelby's hand. That touch—that intimate touch—is what broke her.

Tears started pouring down Shelby's face and her body broke down into shudders as she wept. "How—how am I supposed to explain to Rachel that her Mommy has c-c-cancer?" she sobbed. "I—I'm dying right now, Cassandra. Rachel's Mommy is dying and I—How do I tell her that she doesn't get a—a—a brother or sister?!"

"Hey hey hey hey," Cassie got up and sat down next to Shelby, wrapping her arms around her and holding her while she shook and shuddered and cried. "It's okay, Shelby," she whispered. "You're not going to—you're not going d-die I promise. I won't let that happen. You're going to—you're getting this surgery done and you're going to be perfectly healthy—you're going to be okay." She held her tightly in her arms and kissed her cheek. "No tears, love. No tears. You will be perfectly fine."

"H-How do we tell Rachel that—that her Mommy's—"

"We're not telling Rachel that her mother's dy—dying" _It was so damn hard to say._ "Because you're not. We'll explain to her that you need surgery and that it will keep you alive. That it will make you healthy again. That you're sick but you're going to—you're going to get better. That you're going to—"_damn the tears are back._ "You're going to be okay, Shelby. God I love you so much just please, you have to stay strong for me, please. You're going to make it through this. You're strong, Shelby. Good god you're the strongest woman I've ever met and you will conquer this. You WILL." Tears poured down her face now too and for a long time the two women just sat there and held each other, crying in each other's arms.

Shelby had cancer.

She could never have another child.

She was, as of this moment, dying of cancer.

She needed a serious surgery.

. . .

Cassie had her arms very lightly around Shelby as they laid in bed later on that night. As if she were too fragile. As if, if Cassandra touched her, she might break. Shelby hated that feeling.

"I'm not a fucking time bomb, Cassandra," she said.

Cass raised her eyebrows and Shelby turned around to face her. "You can touch me, you can hold me. I'm not going to explode, and I'm not going to fucking die in your arms."

Cass tightened her grip and placed kisses on Shelby's cheek. "I'm sorry." tears fell from her eyes and splashed onto Shelby's face. "I'm sorry, Shelby, I'm so sorry."

Her wife's apologizing made her break down once more. Breaking down at all was a rare occurrence for Shelby Corcoran and she hated every second of the feelings. But she was terrified. What if she and Cassie hadn't wanted a second baby and hadn't gone in to see the doctor? In a month or so, she would've been dead.

She had loved the feeling of carrying Rachel inside of her. ADORED it. And now she could never feel that again. And Cassie couldn't afford to carry a baby.

And the thought of surgery, of this disease controlling her, of her not being in control of her own body, of people digging around inside her to remove a part of her, scared the hell out of her.

"I'm sorry I snapped at you," Shelby cried.

"Shh, shh, sweetheart, it's okay," Cassandra wrapped Shelby as much in her embrace as was possible and caressed her face. "We'll be okay. You'll be alright. Everything will be perfect. We just have to do what the doctor thinks is right. I know we don't like to trust but this time we just have to, okay?" she continued to kiss her, thankful that there was a way to save her, and that this wouldn't be one of the last nights to hold her, to kiss her, to touch her, to soothe her.

"I love you so much."

"I love you so much, too."

. . .

Rachel talked Cassandra and Shelby into oblivion about the sleepover all the way home.

Shelby nodded and smiled and listened to their daughter but Shelby was an actress. She was scared. She felt numb. Cass drove, sliding her hand up and down Shelby's arm in what she hoped was a comforting fashion.

When they got home, Rachel took her stuff to her room and Shelby took a long, deep breath. She took Cassie's hand and they sat down on the couch. She laid her head against her wife's shoulder as their daughter walked out into the living room.

"So have you figured out what's going to happen?" she asked, excited. She turned to Cassie. "Are you carrying this time, Mama?"

Slowly, Cassie shook her head. "Not this time, munchkin."

Confused, Rachel looked at Shelby. "Mom's gonna do it again?"

Shelby closed and reopened her eyes, slowly, and sat up. "Rachel, honey," she began, refusing to let herself cry in front of Rachel no matter how scared she felt. "We found out that we can't have another baby."

Rachel widened her eyes. "Why not?" she looked destroyed and hadn't even heard the whole story. Shelby dry swallowed. Cass continued for her.

"Mommy's very sick, sweetheart," she took a deep breath. "And she needs surgery so she can get better. And the surgery will make it so she can't have babies anymore."

Tears formed in Rachel's eyes. "But you're gonna get better, right?" she asked, breaking her mothers' hearts.

"Yes, baby," Shelby promised.

"Can I hug you?" Rachel wondered, sad that her mom was so sick and sad for her mommies since she knew they really wanted another baby. She was scared to hug her because she didn't want to hurt her.

"Of course, Rachel, come here," She hugged her tightly and whispered into her head, "Mommy will be back to healthy after next week, okay? Don't be sad for me, Rachel, okay? No more being sad from any of us. I'm going to be fine."

. . .

Shelby had a total abdominal hysterectomy. This would mean that they removed her uterus and cervix by making a (in her case, 6 inch) incision on her lower stomach, (in her case, vertically).

She was stitched back up after a successful surgery and was told she would recover and start to be able to return to her normal life by the time 6 weeks was up. She could no longer have children, but she was healthy. She had Cassie and Rachel and she was so thankful that she still had a life to live with them.

That was what mattered the most.


	19. First Kiss

**TheLadyT: Rachel's first kiss.**

**A/N: I'm making this story Pezberry-that was my plan from the beginning, so I hope that's okay! Thanks for the prompt! Oh also, Rachel is 13. And I PROMISE to write a "Shelby freaking out about her daughter being old enough to have a crush and a gf" chapter in the near future! xoxo**

**And I don't own Bubbly, that song is by Colbie Caillat.**

**love always, Hayley**

* * *

**First Kiss**

**Rachel:**

Santana's hanging out over at our house tonight-we just got done watching a movie, all of us together, and now my moms have gone off to Mom's office to talk about some NYADA thing or some school thing or something. In any case I'm alone with Santana and my heart races. I'm not sure when she became my crush instead of just my best friend, but it's starting to take it's toll. My head starts spinning when I realize how close she's sitting next to me. In a panic-I'm not sure I know how to feel these feelings-I stand and clap my hands together.

"You wanna sing?" I ask, nervously. My palms are getting all sweaty. My heart is pounding.

"Sure," Santana grins and crosses her legs on the couch. "Sing me something?" she raises an eyebrow and asks so innocently and it practically makes my legs turn to jelly. I don't think I've ever been so nervous to sing something. But what do I sing to her? Maybe I can kill two birds with one stone? Maybe I should tell her I like her through song?

Oh, god, but what song?

After thinking about it for a minute, I go to sit down at the grand piano in the corner of the room and play out a couple of chords. Santana grins from across the room and my stomach does a flip and I start singing before I get scared and back out.

_"I've been awake for a while now,_

_you've got me feelin like a child now,_

_cuz everytime I see your bubbly face,_

_I get the tingles in a silly place._

_It starts in my toes and I crinkle my nose_

_wherever it goes, I always know,_

_hat you make me smile, please stay for a while now,_

_just take your time, wherever you go."_

I won't look up at her. I'm not sure I want to know what she's thinking. Maybe this was a bad idea. Maybe I should just stop.

No, the show must go on.

I take a deep breath and play some more chords and keep singing,

_"The rain is fallin on our window pane,_

_but we are hidin in a safer place._

_Under covers staying safe and warm,_

_You give me feelings that I adore._

_They start in my toes, make me crinkle my nose,_

_wherever it goes, I always know,_

_That you make me smile, please stay for a while_

_now just take your time wherever you go._

_But what am I gonna say when you make me feel this way,_

_I just...mmmm. _

_And it starts in my toes, makes me crinkle my nose,_

_Wherever it goes, I always know,_

_that you make me smile please stay for a while _

_now just take your time wherever you go."_

One more verse, Rachel. One more verse and then you can look up and wonder if you just made the worst mistake ever and completely lost your best friend.

_"I've been asleep for a while now,_

_You tuck me in just like a child now,_

_Cuz everytime you hold me in your arms,_

_I'm comfortable enough to feel your warmth._

_It starts in my soul and I lose all control,_

_when you kiss my nose, the feelings show._

_Cuz you make me smile, baby just take your time now,_

_holdin me tight._

_Wherever, wherever, wherever you go._

_Wherever, wherever, wherever you go_."

I finish the song, my heart beating faster than it ever has before. I think it's about to fall out of my chest. Is this what a heart attack feels like? Oh my god maybe i'm dying.

I need to just look up at her. Just look up at her.

Slowly, I turn my head up and see her, grinning from ear to ear. A tear falls down her cheek, and Santana Lopez doesn't cry.

"That's really how you feel, Rachel?" she wonders, sniffing and standing and walking towards me. I've forgotten how to breathe.

"Yeah," I manage to say without thinking. "Yes, it is Santana."

What do the tears mean? Does she like me too? Or is she sad that she can't be my friend anymore because she doesn't like me back and might think it's too weird?

She sits down on the piano bench next to me and my breathing gets heavy. She moves part of my hair behind my ear-a piece that fell out of place while I was playing. I blush.

"You-if you don't' like me too, that's fine I'll-I'll figure out how to deal with it, it's just that-I-I felt like you needed to know that I have all of these feelings for you-more than best friends feelings and I wasn't-wasn't sure how to tell you that I-"

Santana rolls her eyes and presses her lips to mine. I practically gasp at the gesture. She presses closer to me and my heart thuds as I melt into the kiss. It's amazing. It's more than I ever dreamed it would be. If my heart beats any faster my mothers are going to have to take me to the hospital. Fireworks go off in my head. I close my eyes and this electricity goes off between me and Santana and I cheer in my head. She likes me too! Best worst mistake I've ever made!

This is my first kiss. I don't want it to end but eventually we break a part.

I blush again and so does Santana and she explains, "You needed to stop talking,"

I laugh. She's right-I had been babbling, hadn't I? I do that when I'm nervous. "So, is that a "you like me too" kiss?" I ask.

She laughs. "Yes, Rachel, of course," she hugs me tightly and it feels amazing-maybe not as amazing as the kiss, but...

. . .

Cassie and Shelby had been discussing a job opportunity at NYADA when they heard Rachel playing on the grand piano.

"Woah woah woah," Cassie stopped Shelby from talking and pulled her towards the office door. It was glass, after all. They COULD see through it. Cass caught some of the lyrics that her daughter was singing and pressed her lips together, hiding a smile. "Listen to that," she said to Shelby.

Shelby grinned. "I knew it! I KNEW she was crushing on Santana!"

They watched, feeling like they were sort of invading the girls' privacy but…it was just too precious to miss. Suddenly, Santana walked over towards Rachel and moved a piece of hair out of the girl's face. They watched, Cassie grabbed Shelby's arm excitedly, as Rachel babbled and Santana pressed her lips to Rachel's.

"Look at our little girl getting her first kiss!" Cass exclaimed. "We should celebrate."

"We'll embarrass her, Cass," Shelby laughed.

"That's what I'm here for. To embarrass our little girl. Of course we'll wait until Santana leaves."

Shelby sighed. "It looks as though she's not a little girl anymore, Cassie. And if this relationship is going to happen, we're going to have to make some new house rules. The whole sleep over thing is going to have to be rearranged."

"Man you're a buzz kill." Cassie smirked.

Shelby widened her eyes. "Well if you want your daughter having-"

"WOAH, LA LA LA LA" Cassie put her fingers in her ears. "She's our little girl!"

Shelby laughed and pulled away from the office door with a small smile. It broke her heart that their daughter was getting so big so fast, but she was happy that she was finally able to tell Santana how she felt about her. She knew that Rachel had been hiding this crush for a while...


	20. First Kiss, Pt 2

**Me: I had to make a Pt. 2 to First Kiss where Cassie embarrasses Rachel. I just had to.**

**jadelouise: I have a prompt for you when Rachel is older and she has her first crush of boyfriend/girlfriend and Cassie or Shelby freaking out about their baby growing up and refusing to accept it. xx**

**Thank you so much for the prompt! I had tons of fun with this one.**

**Made my family watch Bride Wars tonight. Instead of Date Night we had Kate Night. (Better, I feel, to have Kate Night than Date night). So I got into a very giddy Kate Hudson is incredible oh my god mood and decided that some SDLS was what was necessary for the rest of the night. xD Thus, here you are. **

**Love always, Hayley**

* * *

**First Kiss Pt.2**

Santana had gone home a few hours before and Rachel and Shelby were sitting down at the counter/table for dinner.

"Cass! Come on, your dinner's going to get cold!" Shelby called out, rolling her eyes at her wife's antics. She wasn't sure what Cassie was about to do, but she was pretty sure it was over the top.

As if on cue (but maybe mainly because Shelby had just called her into the kitchen), Cassie skipped out towards them, did a little spin, and put a crown on top of Rachel's head.

Confused, Rachel looked up at her Mama and put her hands on the crown. "What's…this?" she half-laughed. Cass pressed a quick kiss to Rachel's cheek and Shelby put her head into her hands with another eye roll and a laugh. Why, Cassie? But why?

"You're queen," Cassie explained, hopping up into her seat across from Rachel and Shelby. Cass folded her hands in front of her and grinned from ear to ear.

"….Of?" Rachel laughed and shook her head.

"First kisses," Cassie pursed her lips and raised her eyebrows.

Rachel had just taken a bite of food. She nearly started choking. "Wh-what?"

Cass laughed. "Come on, Rach, you can't hide anything from me. So how was it? Was it like fantastic? Was it hot? Was it weird?"

"Mama…" Rachel's face reddened and she stared down at her dinner. "Don't. Please, just don't."

"Why not, Rach?!" Cass protested, the huge grin still on her face. "That was like the best first kiss ever! Didn't you think it was romantic? Aren't you happy you FINALLY told Santana that you like her?"  
"Mama!" Rachel's face was so red that it looked sunburned. She turned to her Mom for help.

Shelby laughed and gave Cassie a condescending look. "Cass. Come on, leave the poor girl alone."

"What?!" Cassie shrugged innocently. "It's just girl talk! She obviously can't go and talk to her best friend about it because she KISSED _her_."

"You're so embarrassing," Rachel covered her face with her hands.

"You don't have to do this, Rach," Shelby told her sympathetically. "You can take your dinner to your room."

Rachel looked up at her mother as if that was the happiest thing she'd ever heard in her life. "Thank you!" She said gratefully. She picked up her plate and practically ran to her bedroom, absolutely mortified. Cassie laughed gleefully.

Shelby rolled her eyes AGAIN and pressed her lips together, suppressing a smile. "Are you done torturing our daughter now?" she giggled.

"Never!" Cassie took a bite of pasta. "It's too much fun. Why, you don't think she's actually mad, do you?"  
"No," Shelby grinned. "She's tough. She'll live. She knows she's your daughter."

. . .

"Did you have to?" Rachel asked later, plopping down on the couch next to her Mama.

Cassie felt a little bad, but not too bad. She reached over and pulled Rachel into a hug. "Oh, Rachel…" she said softly, kissing her daughter's head. "Yes."

Shelby let out a laugh and took a drink of her tea.

"But Mama, it's SANTANA."

"That's EXACTLY why I had to do it!" Cassie said. "We've known forever that you like Santana."

Rachel blushed again. "Is it really so obvious?"

"Apparently not to Santana…" Cassie mumbled. Rachel gave her a look of panicked disbelief. "Well she knows _now_, so just be happy. I'm happy for you, that's why I have to embarrass you."

"You're not mad?" Rachel wondered.

"That you have a crush on Santana? Why would I be mad that you have a crush on Santana?" Cassie laughed.

"Because I'm your little girl." Rachel mumbled.

This made Cassie turn serious and sentimental. "Rachel," she hugged her tighter and Shelby watched the exchange with wide, sad eyes. "You'll always be our little girl." She whispered.

With a small, upset smile, Shelby got up and walked out of the living room. Rachel looked at her Mama, concerned. "Is…is Mom okay?"

"Yeah," Cassie said. "Yeah, Mom's fine. I'm just…I'm going to go talk to her for a minute, okay?"

"Okay. Is she mad at me?" Rachel worried. She didn't want this crush to affect her relationship with her moms, and she really didn't want her Mom to be upset about it.

"No, sweetheart," Cass tried to comfort Rachel. She really wasn't sure why Shelby was so upset but she was positive it wasn't because she was mad at Rachel. "No, of course she's not mad at you." She kissed the top of Rachel's head once more before saying, "I'll be right back, okay?"

Rachel nodded softly and Cass walked to the bedroom where she found Shelby, crying into her pillow. It wasn't often that Shelby cried.

"Hey," Cassie said softly. "Are you okay?" she sat down on the bed next to Shelby and rubbed light, gentle, slow circles on her wife's back. She knew Shelby liked that.

"She's growing up so fast!" Shelby picked her head up and turned it to look at Cassie. "Wasn't she five like, yesterday? Running around and barging through doors when she wasn't supposed to and learning how to sing and practicing dance with Santana in your studio and begging for ice cream even though it was late at night? I mean, she's not our little girl anymore!"

"Shelby, listen to me," Cassie swallowed over the lump in her throat because she knew that Shelby was right. Rachel was getting older way too fast. She had tried embarrassing Rachel to make it easier and maybe more fun to cope with—to cover her sadness—but she knew that Shelby wasn't so easy going. Shelby was more serious and at this point she sort of had a right to be. "Like I just got done telling Rachel, she will ALWAYS be our little girl, no matter how old she gets or how mature she acts or however many girlfriends or boyfriends she ends up going through in the future. So she took another step towards being a grown woman today and that's depressing for us, but it's also something to celebrate. I mean, did you SEE how romantic that was? Was YOUR first kiss that good?"

Shelby laughed and spun her body around, sitting up as Cassandra caressed her face, lovingly. They held hands in Shelby's lap as Shelby said, "No," and laughed harder. "My first kiss was horrible." She admitted. "It was with this gross guy that I didn't even like."

Cass laughed. "So why'd you kiss him?"

"Because," Shelby insisted. "I was fifteen and hadn't had a kiss yet and I was desperate!"

Cassie laughed. "So you see? We should just be thankful that Rachel had a good first kiss experience, right?"

Shelby nodded. "You're right. But…I mean, she'll be 14 in three months. Baby…we're getting _old_."

At this, Cassandra raised a seductive eyebrow. "Excuse me, Miss Corcoran?" she put a hand over her heart, faking being taken aback. "We are _not_ old." She moved forward and straddled Shelby's waist, making Shelby fall backwards onto the bed. "Do _old_ people do this?" she questioned, sucking on Shelby's neck. Shelby moaned.

"No," her voice was shaky. "No I guess not."

Cassie hummed against Shelby's neck and Shelby thought she was going to pass out. They couldn't be old. Old people weren't this sexy.

"Okay," she gasped. "Okay, we're not old. We can't do this right now, Rachel's out in the living room."

With a shrug, Cassie got up and swayed her hips as she walked away. Shelby ached for more.

"But!"

"We don't want Rachel to walk in and catch us. That girl's growing up too fast." Cassie shook her head and Shelby closed her eyes and laughed a breathy laugh. Oh, her wife and her games.


	21. Ignorance

**Guest: This was great, can we see a chapter where someone actually gets quote aggressive with the moms in front of Rachel, causing Cass to be very defensive.**

**A/N: Rachel is 10. This may be a bit more aggressive then you had in mind, and it is more than I had originally intended, to, but I just let my fingers type and this is what happened, so… I hope you like it. This didn't come out EXACTLY the way I wanted it, but I wasn't sure how to add to it, so if you have any ideas for prompts about this one, i'll add parts to it like I have to other ones. In any case, tell me what you think!**

**With love always, Hayley**

* * *

**Ignorance**

Cass and Shelby walked hand in hand down the street, heading towards the clothing store to get Rachel some new back-to-school clothes. They were accompanied by their good friend, Holly, Santana, and of course, Rachel. They usually didn't hold hands in public. Or at least, when Rachel was younger, it wasn't something that they often did. But they were slowly getting used to the tiny little public display of affection. It took Cassie a while to be able to warm up to the idea. Especially since after the Crazy July incident, no matter how hard she tried not to, she worried about what people thought of her.

As they were walking they were laughing about something Holly had said. Before they could continue on, a couple of men scoffed as they passed. One of them shouted out, "DYKES!"

Shelby rolled her eyes and Cassandra nearly growled, tightening her grip on Shelby's hand. Shelby mumbled to her, "Just don't listen, Cassie. Just ignore them."

"What you're not going to acknowledge us?" One yelled as the girls kept walking. Rachel stayed close to her Aunt Holly, and gripped Santana's hand. She hated when people did this. Why couldn't they all just be left alone? Freedom of expression and self?!

The third and final man jogged up towards them and Cassie's heart pounded. Shelby wasn't sure she'd be able to hold her back, and wasn't positive that she actually wanted to. Both cast worried, furtive looks at Rachel and Santana. The two young girls didn't need to be in the mix of this. Maribel put Santana in their care and there was no way in hell they were going to let her or their daughter be a part of this.

Two men stood in front of Shelby and Cassie, forcing them to stop. The third took Cassie's arm in his hand and pulled up close to her. "Hello sweetheart,"

Cassie clenched her teeth. "Let GO of me."

"You two are the hottest dykes I'VE ever seen," the one in front of Shelby said, licking his lips. Shelby dry swallowed. She didn't know what to do, and she was afraid. What if these men had guns? What if they got to Rachel or Santana or Holly? All because she and Cassie had decided to hold hands in public. Her heart pounded rapidly against her chest as the man closest to her slid his hand up her arm and grabbed her shoulder, tightly.

"I bet I can change your mind," he whispered roughly into her ear.

"Back OFF." Cassandra growled.

Shelby nearly let out a gasp. His grip had slid down to her forearm and got tighter and tighter and it was really hurting. She worried about what the other one was doing to Cassie. Cass, against her better judgment, let out a short, quick breath. The one close to her had a tight grip on her waist. When she caught her breath, she said, hurriedly,

"Holly, take the girls and go,"

Holly was conflicted. She didn't want to leave Cass and Shelby alone. But Cass was right, the girls didn't need to witness this. Rachel's eyes had started watering and Santana looked like the Incredible Hulk got pissed off. Nobody messed with Rachel's Mommies! But she was smart enough not to say anything—she knew they'd try to hurt Rachel and Holly and her, too. Holly bit back tears of her own as the third man tried to grab both Shelby and Cassie at the same time.

"HOLLY," Cassie's voice was a loud warning as Shelby tried twisting out of the man's grip. She heard a snap and nearly screamed. It felt as if part of her arm was broken.

Scared for everyone, Holly did what she was told. She ran with Rachel and Santana up to the nearest store. Her plan was to use their phone to call the police. It took her way too long to explain the situation to the clerk so she decided to just shove past her and call 911. Santana and Rachel still had each other's hands, tightly. Rachel had soft tears falling down her cheeks.

"It'll be okay, Rachel," Santana promised, giving her a big hug. "They'll be okay. The police will come and beat the bad guys up and your Mommies will be okay."

Rachel cried on her best friend's shoulder, thankful that Santana was there with her.

Meanwhile, Cassandra's eyes widened at Shelby's half-scream. She had heard the snap too. "Shelby?" tears threatened to fall from her eyes but they stung as she forced them back. Forced them to stay at bay. If she cried, they won.

She thought up a battle plan. The first thing she needed to do was make sure Shelby was safe. Then she would worry about getting herself out of the situation. The man drew himself closer to Shelby and Cass didn't even think, she just forced her knee out. The man doubled over so she knew that she had succeeded in hitting her target. She knew that she and Shelby were small and likely to be hurt easily, but they were strong. Cassie knew she was tiny—she had a dancer's body—but that meant she could dodge between them.

Shelby spun out of the man's grip (the one Cass had just kneed) and elbowed the other guy. She couldn't believe she was free. She moved her right arm to grab Cassie, but she realized she couldn't move it without excruciating, agonizing pain. "AHH!" she let out a scream she hadn't meant to let slip.

Everything was happening fast. It wasn't any of that slow-motion serious-situation bullshit.

It hadn't been 5 minutes since the men had first spotted them. Though time seemed to have stood still.

Cass knocked her head forward and succeeded in breaking the one who had ahold of her waist's nose. She stumbled backward and fell onto the ground but scrambled back up and took Shelby's non pained arm. "We need to get out of here now," she panted.

Shelby nodded and they ran off towards the store they saw Holly and the girls run into. As they made it through the front doors, they heard police sirens. They knew they were safe. They were panting, their hearts beating fast. They had gotten into fights over this before, but never one so violent. Both women were pretty badly shaken. Holly guided them over to some seats and had them take slow, deep breaths. Rachel was still crying, and she wanted to run into her Mommies' arms, but was afraid they were hurt. Santana held on to Rachel, a couple tears of her own falling.

"Let me," Cassie breathed in and out. "Shelby, let me see your arm."

Reluctantly, Shelby turned her body and showed Cassandra her right arm. She couldn't move it over towards her. She knew it was bad.

Cass let out a gasp. "Oh, my god, Shelby,"

Her arm, right above her wrist, was swollen and red and starting to bruise fast. It didn't look normal, and Cassie was worried it might be broken. Very, very carefully, Cassie tested the waters and lightly set her hand under Shelby's arm. Shelby bit her cheek and let out an un-human like growl. With wide and concerned eyes, Cassie shot a glance up towards Shelby. Shelby had tears in her eyes.

"Okay, we're getting the two of you to the hospital," Holly instructed. "I can call Maribel and see if the girls can stay over there until—"

"NO!" Rachel protested, "I want to go with you!"

Santana saw the fear in Rachel's eyes and then saw the pain and fear in the eyes of both of her moms. She swallowed and took Rachel's hand tighter. "I want to go, too," she said.

With a slight nod, Cassandra went to stand. She drew in a sharp breath. While they were running, adrenaline was pumping and she hadn't felt it before. But now she could tell there was something seriously wrong with her rib cage. She could hardly breathe without yelling out.

"Are you okay?" Shelby demanded.

Cassie nodded again. "Don't worry about me, Shelbs. We need to get your arm looked at."

"I DO worry about you," Shelby insisted, standing. "We need to get your torso looked at, apparently. Why didn't you tell me you were so hurt?"

"When did I have the time?" Cass was tired and in pain so she got snappy. "I'm sorry," she amended immediately. "I didn't notice until now."

"Okay," Shelby said softly. Finally, it was as if the reality of the situation was just sinking in. She let a few tears fall. "I'm so sorry, Cassie."

Cass widened her eyes. "For what? You have ABSOLUTELY nothing to be sorry for." she promised, placing a soft kiss on Shelby's cheek. Even though they were still in public. "This isn't your fault, sweetheart,"

They very cautiously walked outside, where police officers were waiting to talk to them.

"But I'm the one who talked you into being a bit more public about-"

"Stop, Shelbs. We shouldn't have to hide who we are from the world and if a few ignorant MEN are going to freak out and hurt us over it, that isn't our fault, it's theirs. Okay? I mean it."

Shelby nodded slowly and once they had talked to the police officers were escorted to the emergency room, where, after waiting for a couple of hours, they were finally taken back and examined. As the doctor was ace wrapping Shelby's arm, (and Shelby clenched the hell out of her jaw and squeezed Cassie's hand to the point of it almost breaking itself), he explained that it wasn't broken, just badly sprained and horribly bruised. He said it would be better in a couple of weeks before turning to Cassie. Shelby nursed her arm in her lap.

Holly and the girls had heard the story when Shelby and Cass told the police what had happened. Holl looked at Cass, ever the warrior, as she forced out a slow breath and lifted her shirt so the doctor could examine her torso. He winced, and she winced, and grabbed Shelby's good hand. Santana wiped away a few of Rachel's silent tears.

"I didn't know you knew how to do all of that," Shelby admitted, trying to get Cassandra's mind off the fact that the pain was torturous as the doctor had her lie down and he pressed on her breast bone to see if she had any fractured ribs. She screamed, "AHH! SON OF A-" Shelby stopped her from yelling by distracting her by kissing her lips softly. The doctor smiled at the technique (many couples did something like that to distract from pain) and decided to ace wrap her too, to prevent extreme movement. He told her that she had a fractured rib and that deep breathing would be very painful. She needed a lot of rest and relaxation, no working, absolutely no dancing for six weeks.

_Shit_, Cassie thought. _Carmen's going to fire me. I can't not work for six weeks. No way in hell am I going to NYADA in a wheel chair to a dance class and there's no way in hell Shelby will let me walk in there against the doctor's orders like I'm totally fine. I'll have to video teach or something..._

He prescribed them both a pain medication and told them they had very high tolerance for pain-most people who had fractured ribs or arm injuries as bad as he'd seen Shelby and Cassie's threw tantrums and cried and cried. He'd seen like two tears from each woman and the occasional forced out breath with the exception of Cassie's almost-curse.

Once he was going to get their pain medicine, Cass answered, "I didn't know I could do that-either. It was-all instinct." talking kinda really hurt, too, considering you had to breathe to talk.

Shelby kissed her again. "My savior." she whispered.

Cassie smirked. "You didn't do too bad for yourself, Shelbs. That elbow was brilliant-he couldn't get back up. You probably-fractured more ribs on him-then he did-on me." her words were staggered.

Shelby smiled softly, just so thankful that they were both okay. No more PDA, for a while. "Rest, Cassie. Don't speak anymore, okay?"

Rachel wiped up her final tears and moved to hug Shelby, now that she knew that she could. "I'm so sorry those men were so horrible, Mommy," she just started crying again. She was terrified. She wasn't sure if her mommies were going to be okay when she had to run away from them. She didn't understand why anyone could be so cruel. Her mommies hadn't done anything wrong!

"Shh, shh, Rachel, sweetheart," Shelby soothed. "Don't be sorry, baby, it's all over. Mama and I are fine. I promise. I'm sorry you had to see that."

"Not all of it," Rachel reminded her.

Thank god for small miracles.

"I'm sorry you-had to see-any of it," Cass said, sitting up and cringing as she did so. Rachel sniffed and looked over at her.

"I don't want to hug you 'cause I'll hurt you," she said.

"How about a-kiss instead?" Cass smiled. "My face isn't fractured."

Shelby and Holly and Santana laughed and Cassie refrained from doing so due to the fact she wasn't really about the whole yelling thing. Rachel gave her a kiss. "I love you, Mama." she looked at Shelby. "I love you too, Mommy."

"We love you too, Rachel." Shelby told her as Santana ran up to her and hugged her tightly.

"I love you too, Shelby," Santana told her. She had been absolutely horrified about all of this (especially since recently she had been having these feelings about Rachel and she certainly didn't want something like that to happen to THEM) but knew she had had to be strong for Rachel. After hugging Shelby, she kissed Cass on the cheek. "And I love you, too."

"We love you-too, San," Cass smiled at her, weakly. She had a pounding headache and she felt faint. Like she could pass out at any second.

After this it was Holly's turn. She hugged Shelby and wiped a few tears. "You scared me shitless," she muttered into her ear. "Thank god the two of you are okay."

"We were pretty scared shitless-too, you know-Holl," Cass said, trying to stay awake as Holly gave her a kiss on both cheeks. Holly watched as Cass nearly fell backwards. Holl put her hands behind Cassie's back to hold her up, carefully.

"Are you okay?"

"Dizzy," she mumbled in response.

The doctor came back into the room a few minutes later and explained that dizziness and exhaustion were likely a side effect from the fractured rib. He said that BOTH Shelby and Cassandra needed to relax and sleep and take the medication as necessary. They agreed and were sent home.

Santana stayed the night with them, as well as Holly, to make sure things were okay (she could be so protective sometimes). Shelby used her good hand to move Cassandra's hair out of her face as she kissed her wife's temple.

"I love you so much, and I'm so very thankful that you're okay, love, because I could never EVER live my life without you. I'm sorry people are so ignorant and rude and horrible in this world."

"I love-Love you too, Shelby," Cassie smiled but didn't have the strength to open her eyes. Her drowsiness mixed with the pain medication was heavy on her eyelids. "Don't apologize for the way the world-is. I love you-so very much-and couldn't live without-you either. I wasn't sure-what to do today-but I knew you had to-come out alive if-if it killed me-"

"Shh, Cass," Shelby placed a soft kiss on her wife's lips, which Cass reciprocated. "Please don't think like that. I love you. We both need to sleep."

"Okay."

"Goodnight, love."

"We're alive, Shelby." A small, thin smile spread across Cassandra's lips. "I'd-say it's a pretty-good night."


	22. Welcome to NYADA, Pt1

**babyballa10: I have a prompt request for you could you please possibly write a chapter about how the couple met each other and eventually started to date and fall in love? Thanks.**

**A/N: This will have to be a mini-series within this series. It's going to have to happen in parts, because one simply isn't going to cut it. That sound okay? :)**

**I've gotten to the point in the summer where everything's planned out but i'm half-aware of what i'll be doing until school starts again-basically what this means is i'll write when I can. (Which yeah, I know, that's sort of what i've been doing anyways, but I figured maybe that would explain my absence for the past few days). But I love all of these prompts and have a lot of fun with them.**

**Also, just so you know, I get your prompt the first time you send it-you don't have to keep resending the same one-if I don't work on it right away it just means I haven't figured out how I want to do it yet-but as soon as I get them I write them down in my notebook and they're saved. :)**

**With ALL of THAT being said, enjoy. :) **

**With love always, Hayley**

* * *

**Welcome to NYADA, Pt.1**

Shelby Corcoran walked down the streets of New York, feeling confident. She headed into Starbucks and grinned. Everything in New York seemed so much bigger and better. Finally, she was free. She was living in her dream city, going to her dream school, (starting classes Monday-it was Friday). She was independent-away from her parents. Finally, she was-

Covered in coffee.

"What the hell?!" Shelby sputtered. She looked up to find the source of the freezing coffee now dripping down her new blouse, and saw a (admittedly very attractive) leggy blonde woman. The leggy blonde woman had an amused look on her face, and was quite obviously trying not to laugh. Shelby dropped her jaw at this woman's clumsiness and audacity. The blonde's frozen coffee was now all over her, and the blonde was just smiling about it.

So much for a fresh start in New York.

The jaw dropping did it. The blonde laughed. Shelby scowled at her.

"Sorry," the blonde said, covering her mouth.

Shelby raised an eyebrow. "Are you?" she found it incredibly hard to believe.

The blonde shrugged. "Welcome to New York."

Confused, (because how would she know Shelby was new to New York?) Shelby said, "How'd you know I-"

This made the blonde scoff. "Please." she let out a low chuckle that Shelby glared upon hearing. It was a low, seductive chuckle that made Shelby sure that this girl got away with whatever the hell she wanted. "The way you're dressed, the wide eyed ingénue look. Clearly you're a college freshie." She eyed Shelby up and down, almost in approval. Shelby crossed her arms over her chest as the blonde continued. "NYU or NYADA? You're NYADA, aren't you?"

Shelby stammered as she tried to wipe some of the spilled coffee off of her shirt. What was it about this blonde woman that made her stammer like that? Shelby Corcoran was never one to get nervous. Or self-conscious. However she was pretty pissed about the coffee thing. Meanwhile, the blonde had ordered another coffee for herself.

"Yes, but how-"

The blonde gave her a wink. "Save your breath, sweetheart. NYADA freshies need it." she nodded down at Shelby's coffee-stained shirt. "Enjoy your coffee."

With wide, angry eyes, Shelby ordered herself a coffee, finally, and practically stormed back to the NYADA campus. Once she got back to her dorm, she sighed, unlocked the door, and screamed, nearly dropping her own coffee. She just had rotten luck.

Leggy, coffee-spilling blonde was already there, unpacking her stuff on the empty bed. She double blinked at Shelby and put her hands up to her ears. "Jesus, you're a vocal one. Noted."

"What the hell are you doing here?!" Shelby wondered, trying to process what was going on. Because no. No, leggy, coffee-spilling blonde was NOT going to ruin her NYADA experience as well as her brand new shirt.

Blonde rolled her eyes. "I live here. Schools call it "roommates". And you'd better learn to like me, because from what I've heard, Madame T's sort of a hard ass, and doesn't like to do switch outs. Convenience doesn't seem to be her cup of tea."

Shelby rolled her eyes, furious that only moments before she was free and excited and living in New York all independent and happy, and now she was stuck with a coffee-spilling, mouthy, leggy blonde roommate. She found a clean shirt in her clothes box. "Fine." and went to the bathroom connected to their room to change. No way was she changing in front of her—(Shelby figured her body probably looked pretty weak compared to her new, clearly in shape roommate).

Once she had returned, she realized almost none of her stuff was unpacked, either. She thought what the hell. Might as well.

While she took all of her clothes out of boxes, she sorted them by dressy, dance wear, and every day casual. She noticed that the blonde had already split their closet space in half with a wooden cane. The top of the cane just barely fit under the space between the shelf and the floor.

Shelby watched as the blonde set pairs of stilettos down in her closet space. She noticed the blonde wore an awful lot of blacks and darks. She gave the blonde another once over—a good look this time. Her long blonde hair was actually very beautiful—it cascaded down her back a little past her shoulders in perfect little waves, with slight streaks of a very light brown here and there. She was clearly a dance major-the bottom of her closet was filled with toe shoes and tap shoes, the shelf had a dance duffel on it filled with leotards and fishnets. But her body was a dancer's body too-lean and curvy in all the right places. Shelby caught herself licking her lips a second too late and got a slight blush, turning her head and focusing on her own side of the closet again. But it was too late-blonde had noticed and smirked.

"Take a picture," she teased, standing from her crouch. Shelby stood as well and for a minute they just stared at each other. Finally, the blonde put her hand out. "We might as well just get to the "being friends" part-we're going to be spending a lot of time together. Cassandra July. But some people call me Cass, and most call me Cassie."

Cassandra July.

It was a beautiful name that affected Shelby more than the woman cared to admit. She dry swallowed and took Cassandra's hand. "Shelby Corcoran."

"Corcoran. Sounds rich." Cassandra eyed her with a mysterious dazzle in her eyes. For some reason she made Shelby so stuttery. The woman hated herself for it.

"Um, I don't know. Yeah, my parents are kind of rich..." she muttered, letting go of Cassie's hand and turning back to her boxes.

Cass went back to her boxes, too. "Is that why you can afford to go to NYADA, then?"

Shelby blushed and bit her cheek, not answering. Her parents had NOT been supportive of her wanting to go to NYADA. She had to take out student loans and get scholarships. She was really just lucky she was talented.

Cass noted Shelby's silence and pursed her lips. She wasn't sure why she was being so talkative-people usually were definitely NOT her thing-but she just felt like she needed to talk to Shelby. She was drawn to her in some way. This terrified the dancer.

Shelby was pretty terrified of some of the feelings she'd been having since Cass stumbled her way into her life as well. She wasn't sure she was ready to know what this "friendship" would ensue.

For a while the two girls worked in silence. Cassandra strung white Christmas lights up on the shelf she was placing her text books on, on her side of the room. Shelby was getting out her foldable black ottoman and putting her text books in that, before dragging it next to her bed and putting the cover on it. Finally, as they both started making their beds, Shelby said,

"I'm a voice major, minoring in theatre."

"Dance major, minoring in theatre."

"If I'm voice and your dance, how'd we end up in the same dorm?" Shelby wondered, perplexed.

Cass shrugged and scrunched her nose up at her new brunette roommate. "Guess we're just...lucky."

Another moment of slightly awkward silence went by before Shelby said,

"For a dance major, you're not very graceful."

Cass let out a blunt little laugh. "Are you seriously still upset about that? For god's sake I will buy you a new shirt!"

With a shake of her head, Shelby straightened out her comforter and sat on top of her bed, crossing her legs. "It's fine."

"No it's not," Cass sat on the floor and started stretching out her legs. "I can tell by your tone, Corcoran." she looked up and caught Shelby's eye, winking at her. "I'll buy you a new shirt."

"You really don't have to-"

"Oh, shut up. It's going to happen, just let it happen."

"...okay." at this point, Shelby wasn't sure if Cassandra was talking about the shirt or their friendship.

This woman confused her more than anything else ever had. But she was also admittedly very intrigued by her, if not a little peeved. Shelby Corcoran, for once in her life, was not sure what to think.


	23. Kindergarten

**Bookworm0485: 1st day of kindergarten (moms more nervous/ upset than she is)**

**Madison: Rachel's 1st day of kindergarten and Shelby/Cassie don't want to let their baby girl leave them.**

**Kindergarten**

Shelby and Cassie couldn't sleep. They had been lying in bed for 2 hours, and were still completely wide awake. As Shelby stared at the ceiling in concern, Cass cuddled up against her and massaged slow circles on her stomach. Cassie let out a sigh, tickling Shelby's neck.

"How did our baby get so big so fast?" Cass's lips brushed against Shelby as she asked.

"I don't know, Cass," Shelby admitted, turning her head so that her cheek was pressed against Cassie's. "Rachel's starting kindergarten tomorrow. Tomorrow!"

Cass turned her head and checked the time. It was 12:15. "Technically, she's starting today."

Shelby let out a groan. "No, no, no! She's not ready to start school! She's just a little girl!"

"I know," Cass closed her eyes. "Didn't we just celebrate her 1st birthday like, last week?" Cass wrapped herself tighter around Shelby and murmured, "We can't let her leave."

This made Shelby laugh. "Well she's five, we can't just keep her here and hold her hostage." she sighed as Cass pressed a kiss to her stomach. "It's against the law."

"Can't you home school her?" Cass begged.

"We've talked about this, baby," Shelby whispered. "You know I can't. I need to start giving voice lessons-not just over the computer. It's a new teaching requirement for my job, neither one of us has time to home school her."

The women looked at each other and a tear slipped down Shelby's cheek.

"She's not a baby anymore, Cassie."

"Oh, Shelby," Cass leaned forward and pressed her lips to her girlfriend's, comfortingly. "Rach will always be our baby, okay?"

"She's growing up and going to school." Shelby whispered.

Cass didn't want to think about it anymore. Rachel shouldn't be old enough yet to go to school. Her baby should not be leaving her all day every day. Even if she went to work all day ever day. Irrelevant. She kissed Shelby once more and said, "We need to get some sleep, alright? And we can't be clingy with Rachel tomorrow, or it might scare her."

Shelby nodded, slowly. "You're right, you're right. She's going to be nervous enough tomorrow, we can't add to that."

. . .

They woke at 5:30 and Shelby went out to the kitchen to make breakfast and Rachel's lunch. Meanwhile, Cassie went to wake Rachel up. But when she opened Rachel's bedroom door, she found the light already on, Rachel out of bed and dressed. She was putting a note book in her back pack when Cassie opened the bedroom door.

"Hi, Mama!" Rach beamed up at her.

"Hey, Rach." Cass spoke, cautiously. "How long have you been up?"

Rachel looked at her alarm clock, thought about it, then said, "I don't know!"

Cass laughed lightly and kissed the top of Rachel's head. "Let's go get some breakfast, okay?"

"Okay!" Rachel seemed super excited-the opposite of nervous-which made Cassie's stomach turn.

They found Shelby in the kitchen. She had pancakes made and Cass saw her dab at the corner of her eye, furiously-obviously trying to be tough. With a small smile, Cass sat up at the counter with Rach. Cass worried that if she answered any of Rachel's billion questions, she'd start bawling. Their baby was getting too big too fast.

"Do you think the other kids will like me?" Rach asked, her mouth full of pancakes.

"I'm sure they'll love you, Rachel, you'll make lots of friends," Shelby smiled, trying her best to keep a straight, happy face. She tapped Rachel's nose. "Let's please not talk with your mouth full, ok?"

After swallowing, Rachel said, "At least Santana's in my class. I know her, cuz she's my best friend!"

Laughing, Cass took a drink of coffee and said, "We know that, Rachel."

"I love learning."

"And you're going to love school," Shelby gave a watery smile.

_What if she likes school more than she likes being home?! What if she gets a whole bunch of new friends and decides she's too good for her mommies?! What if she doesn't have time for us anymore?!_

"...Mommy?"

Shelby snapped back to reality. "Yes, sweetheart?"

"You're burning pancakes."

Cass put her head down into her hands. It was going to be a long day.

. . .

The school Rachel would be attending was close enough to walk to, so they decided they would be walking her to and from school every day. After a five minute "Do you have..." interrogation from Shelby, they had started walking. But not Rachel-she was practically skipping.

"I'm going to school, I'm going to school," she said in sing-song.

"Aren't you going to miss your mommies even a little bit, Rach?" Cassandra's tone was only half-light.

"Of COURSE!" Rachel laughed. "But I'm coming home tonight, Mama," she added matter-of-factly. This, at least, made both of her mommies smile. At least they would be a little missed.

They walked Rach to her classroom, gave her a big hug and kiss, and she happily ran to her teacher, leaving her mothers, as well as her baby hood, behind. Shelby bit her lip and walked next to Cassie on the way home. They weren't about being public with their relationship yet-they didn't hide it by any means, but PDA wasn't their style. But both women wanted so badly to ignore their stupid agreed on PDA rule and just hold each other. Once they got home, the house seemed too empty. Cass had 30 minutes before she had to start walking to the NYADA campus. For a long minute, she and Shelby just looked at each other.

Cass refused to let her tears fall but Shelby shook her head.

"Don't do that. Don't be hard-ass Cass right now, I need you to just hold me and cry with me about our baby getting older."

So she did. And they did.

And when Rachel came home, she told of all of her fun kindergarten adventures and her mommies had to come to terms with the fact that life was zooming by so quickly-that all of this was actually happening.


	24. Welcome to NYADA, Pt2

**Continuing the "Shelby and Cassie meet and are roommates" mini series, here is pt.2.**

**I am also working on 2 other prompts (they are longer prompts) for this story, but this one just ended up being finished first.**

**Tell me what you think!**

**(Cassie and Shelby meet in a coffee shop and discover they are college roommates)**

**With love always, Hayley**

* * *

**Welcome to NYADA, pt.2**

The first week of NYADA classes were in full swing. Shelby was finally out of her last class of the day and was sitting on her bed, trying to finish all of her academic homework so she could get to the musical homework as well. Her oh-so-interesting roommate, Cassandra July, was still in one of her many dance classes. Shelby didn't know how Cassandra could dance like that all day-Shelby got exhausted just getting up and going to class.

At one point during her studying, Shelby fell asleep.

She woke an hour later to Cassie crashing open the door of the dorm and falling out of her heels, flopping down onto her bed with a loud groan. Shelby jumped, startled, and found her unfinished paper not even half done on her bed.

"SHIT." she put her head in her hands.

"Woah, you look like hell, Corcoran," Cass gave her a smirk and practically choked on the entire bottle of water she started gulping down.

"Thanks," Shelby mumbled. "I like your shoes."

Cass gave her a slow sarcastic clap. "Bonus points for the effort, but you're not quite there with the whole insulting me thing." she stretched her legs out on her bed and pulled a bottle of whiskey out of her bag, taking a long swig of it. She offered it out to Shelby and Shelby looked up, shaking her head slowly. She didn't understand why she was more tired than Cassie was, but whatever.

"It'll take the edge off," Cass pushed. Shelby shook her head again and Cass shrugged. "Suit yourself. Fail your classes." took another swig, and capped it again, putting back in its place. Over the week, Shelby had learned that Cassandra was pretty dependent on alcohol. However, no matter how much she'd seen Cass drink, the blonde seemed to never get drunk.

Or maybe she was just always drunk, so nothing changed.

That would explain so much.

"Jesus, C," Cass stared, wide eyed, at the academic spread on Shelby's bed. "Do you give yourself any time to breathe?"

"Are all of your classes DANCE?" Shelby answered the question with a question.

Cass shrugged. "I got my academics done last summer."

Shelby raised a disbelieving eyebrow. Cassie really didn't seem like the summer school type. NYADA only made you take basic academics, for Freshman year, and then the rest of the time you focused on your major and minor. Most of Shelby's first semester was all core academics. Shelby was actually jealous of Cass-even if Shelby didn't dance, she would have given anything to not have to be studying math (her weakest suit). Shelby only had a couple of classes having to do with theatre-her Theatre History class and her Music History class, as well as her basic Music Theory class. In none of these classes was she actually in fact singing or performing. She let out a long, slow sigh, tried to do another math problem, screwed it up again, nearly screamed, and slammed the book shut.

Cass widened her eyes, blinking slowly. So she and Shelby had sort of an iffy frenemy-ship going on, but in a way she sort of pitied Shelby. She had all of those classes to get through, and she was obviously really struggling with something, and she looked like she hadn't really slept in days. And it was only the first week.

Slowly, hesitantly, Cassandra stood up and walked over towards Shelby's bed. "You need some help?"

"No," Shelby said stubbornly. "Not from you, not from anybody. Shelby Corcoran is an independent person."

Cass rolled her eyes. So they were speaking in third person now? Great.

"You can be independent and still need help," Cass pointed out. She had homework that she SHOULD be working on, but for some reason, helping Shelby finish hers just seemed more important. Maybe it would make up for spilling coffee all over her (which even though Cassie found it hilarious, she was still a little guilty about). She motioned for Shelby to move over and the stubborn little brunette did, cautiously. Cass also motioned for Shelby to hand her the text book. "What are you struggling with?"

"I'm not struggling," Shelby muttered impatiently, giving her the math book.

Cassandra sighed. "What are you working on?" she corrected herself.

"Why are you helping me?" Shelby couldn't help but ask. She wasn't used to getting help with stuff. Her parents never helped her in school-they just expected perfection in all that she did. Nobody usually cared if she was struggling-they always just expected she could handle things, therefore the misconception in her mind was formed that she had to do things alone and do them 100% flawlessly, any and every time she did something.

With a shrug, Cass responded, "You and I might not necessarily be friends, and we might not completely get along yet, but we're at NYADA. At NYADA, we're family." she gave Shelby a soft smile. Cassie didn't really get along with her family. She got into a lot of trouble when she was younger, and her mom and dad would sometimes get out of hand when they punished her, verbally and physically. So a family-a REAL family-was something she had longed for. It was another reason why she decided to go to NYADA. She knew it was where she needed to be.

It didn't get passed Shelby-the fact that Cassandra had said "yet".

"Okay," Shelby said.

Cass looked over what Shelby was working on and said, "Oh, okay. So what you need to do..." and for a half hour she sat and explained everything to Shelby in steps. Shelby was completely awestruck-she supposed that was what she got for judging Cassandra the second she met her-but she hadn't expected her to be so great with math, or school work in general, and she certainly hadn't expected her to be so patient with her explanation.

Cassie didn't know what had gotten into her. She was never so nice to people, and even though everyone at NYADA was family, they were all also competition. She realized that if she had truly wanted a leg up-and it was really all she had ever wanted, was to be seen as the best for once, instead of people underestimating her and looking at her like she was just some joke-then helping Shelby probably wasn't the smartest move. She usually never let her guard down, but for some reason it was easy to let her nerdy side show while helping Shelby study. For some reason, and she wasn't quite sure what that reason was, but it was easy to be, she dared say, NICE to Shelby. Usually, if she was nice, people took advantage of her. But she didn't think Shelby was going to do that.

"Thank you," Shelby said once she had finished her work. "You actually helped a lot. I don't think I would've been able to finish that if you hadn't explained it to me."

Cassandra's "joke all the time" wall went back up almost immediately. She wasn't sure why that happened, either. "Don't worry about it, Corcoran. Sometimes you just have to take a deep breath and have a bit of fun to get your mind off of study, you know? So here's my proposition: You should come with me to the back to school party that's being thrown tomorrow night."

Shelby scrunched her nose. "I don't know..." she started. Parties weren't usually her thing. She was appreciative of Cassandra's help but a party really wasn't necessary, was it?

"Come on, Corcoran. You have to lighten up and get your little panties out of a bunch or else you'll never be able to pass those academics. You need this party." Cass said.

Shelby shook her head. "I'm not sure, Cassandra." she had seen the way Cass drank, and knew sure as hell she would NOT be able to keep up with her. "I don't think I'm really the partying type of girl. People would probably just point and stare."

Cassandra shrugged. "Then we can give them something to stare at," she suggested. She really wanted Shelby to enjoy herself for once. All she ever did was study and work and Cass felt it was time for her to have a little bit of fun, is all.

A shiver went through Shelby's entire body when those words fell out of her blonde roommate's mouth, and she wasn't entirely sure why. She hid it as best as she could, but Cass caught it and smirked. "Well?" she pressed.

Shelby pressed her lips into a fine line.

"Okay, I'll go, but don't make me regret it."

With a devilish smile that made Shelby unsure if she was ever actually attracted to men at all, Cass said, "You won't regret it, Corcoran."

. . .

The next day when Cass got out of her dance class, she demanded to know why Shelby wasn't dressed for the party. Shelby looked down at her outfit, defensively. "What's wrong with this?!"

Cass clicked her tongue. "Oh young Corcoran, that's not the kind of thing you wear to a college party." she headed over to the closet and started to go through Shelby's side. She found absolutely nothing party worthy, so attacked her own side and pulled out a pair of black skinny jeans, a red ruffled-at-the-top (and very v necky) tank top, and a pair of black stilettos. "Put this on," she instructed, throwing them all on Shelby's bed as she started to take off her own clothes and sift through her closet for something for her to wear.

Shelby's mouth went dry when Cass started to pull off her leotard and fishnets. Immediately, she turned to face the back wall and started putting on Cassandra's clothes. She usually didn't change in front of Cassandra, (because she was very self-conscious about the whole concept of changing in front of the most beautiful woman she'd ever seen) but Cass was standing in front of the bathroom, and to go past her would mean to have some serious self-control in the not-staring-at-Cassandra's-ass department. Shelby quickly dressed but Cass spun around, about to say something to her, when she saw Shelby slipping on her skinny jeans. Cass pressed her lips together to hide a swoon. Since when did women affect her like...like THIS? She shook her head and turned back towards her closet, pulling on another pair of tight black jeans, some high heeled boots, and a blue half-shirt. She vowed not to think about Shelby like that. She had NEVER thought about women like that, and she wasn't about to start now, with Shelby. It just wasn't going to happen. Being flirty with her was one thing...but...no. She couldn't and she wouldn't.

Shelby had an argument in her mind too, while she started doing her makeup. She wasn't sure where this attraction to Cassandra had come from, but she was intent on shoving it away. That's all it was-a simple attraction. All girls had at least one of those in college, right? It certainly didn't MEAN anything.

She finished her make-up and so did Cassie and they turned to face each other. "So," Cass said, giving Shelby a once over that made Shelby start to blush, slightly. Damn her inability to cover up her emotions sometimes. Most of the time she was able to act so well-that's how she got into NYADA in the first place-but for some reason around Cassie...

"You'll do," Cassandra said, taking Shelby's arm in hers. "Let's go."

So with a gulp and a cautiously optimistic attitude, Shelby let herself go to the party with Cassandra.

. . .

Cass did another tequila shot and shook her head wildly, with a laugh. "Come on, Corcoran, just do one," she begged, pursing her lips and doing a sort of puppy dog face.

With an eye roll, Shelby did a tequila shot. She had been drinking one glass of champagne for every of Cassandra's 2, and she still felt nauseous. The tequila burned going down her throat.

"You don't look like you're having fun yet," Cassandra noted with a disapproving tone.

Shelby shrugged, "I'm having fun," she lied.

"You're a horrible liar," Cassandra let her know, bluntly, before taking her hand. "Dance with me?"

Even though Cass was a dance major and Shelby knew it wasn't her strongest suit, she agreed to dance. Maybe it would be fun. If anything, it was taking her mind off of school work.

They got mashed in with a huge crowd of people and Cassandra tilted her head back, swaying along to the music. Shelby's mouth went dry again and she smacked herself mentally. _What the hell is wrong with you? Cut it out._ she told herself. She tried to copy what Cass was doing but couldn't do it as well (she didn't tilt her head back, either). Cass looked up and saw Shelby trying to dance. She gave a soft sympathetic smile and, without even thinking, placed her hands on Shelby's waist.

"You have to move your hips, Corcoran. Be a little more...fluid." Shelby did as she was told, her entire body seeming to catch on fire at Cassandra's touch. She had never had any feeling like this in her life before-not even a guy had turned her on this badly.

"Like this?" she found herself being gutsy enough to say.

Cass gave her a huge grin. "Exactly."

When she took her hands off of Shelby, Shelby found herself disappointed.

And nervous.

And terrified.

But also...safe.

She was so confused.

. . .

Cassandra's heart pounded. After dancing with Shelby she felt like she had met the love of her life, which she knew was just pathetic and stupid. Her mind had never jumped to conclusions like that and she wasn't sure why SHELBY CORCORAN was making her do so. She never went for commitment-her relationships never passed the "one night stands and walks of shame" status. And she had certainly never been with a woman.

But the thought of being with a woman like Shelby. Mmm. Gave her shivers in places she didn't know could shiver. It made her feel so...alive, to think that something as amazing sounding as THAT could be a possibility.

But it would never happen. Besides that, she wasn't sure she wanted to.

So far, she really liked Shelby, and she wasn't going to ruin the poor girl's life with her own broken sob story.

She knocked back another shot, and then another, and another.

It was late.

She cast a longing glance over at Shelby, who looked very tired, slightly drunk, and very sick. It was probably time to get back to the dorm.

"Hey, Corcoran," she said. Shelby looked up and smiled.

"Hi," she giggled.

Cassandra shook her head. Shelby was very obviously drunk, if not a little buzzed at least. "Think it's about time to go?"

"As long as you go with me," Shelby would regret saying that later, Cassie thought to herself as she held Shelby up and they started walking. "I don't want to go alonneee…"

"What ever happened to being independent?" Cassandra smirked.

Shelby shrugged. "I ammm, Cassiieee." she said with a laugh. "But that doesn't mean I don't need help sometimes."

Cass was impressed that in her buzzed state, Shelby could remember what Cassandra had said to her earlier. She gave a smile and when they got back to the dorm, laid Shelby on her bed, before walking over towards her own, making a quick scene of stripping and putting on pajama clothes. Shelby watched her, giddy.

"You have some SERIOUS abs," Shelby noted.

Cass actually blushed. "You need to go to sleep," she laughed.

"But I'm not tired." Shelby said.

"Do you remember me telling you you're a horrible liar?" Cass asked her.

Shelby nodded her head.

"Yeah, that hasn't changed," Cassie informed her. Shelby shrugged then held her stomach. "You okay?" Cass asked her, a bit concerned for her well-being.

"Don't feel fantastic," Shelby admitted. "I blame you."

"Me?!" Cass put a hand over her heart in mock defensiveness.

"'Here, Corcoran, just do one more shot,'" she mocked Cassandra's voice. She stood and walked to the bathroom.

About a minute later and she was throwing up.

Hearing her, Cass ran to the bathroom and found Shelby on the floor, her face staring down at the toilet. Cass got down on her knees and grabbed Shelby's very long, very all over the place, brunette hair, holding it behind her just in time for Shelby to get sick again.

"I'm sorry, C." Cassie said a bit guiltily. She didn't like seeing Shelby like this. "You're kind of a hard ass, I thought you'd be able to handle more than that."

Shelby moaned and threw up again. When she was done, she muttered, "I thought I could too."

Cass got her some water before scooping her up into her arms and putting her in her bed, covering her up. "Feel better? Try not to blow chunks all over your sheets," She smacked herself mentally. Couldn't she let her guard down once? For Shelby, surely? It wasn't like there was anyone else there.

Shelby flipped her off and groaned, turning around in her bed, "You're lucky it's a Friday," she whispered before falling asleep.

Cassandra laughed and got into her own bed, checking the clock.

"Technically, it's a Saturday," she muttered, pulling the blankets over her shoulder.

She had a feeling that being Shelby Corcoran's roommate would be the most interesting thing that'd ever happened to her.


	25. Center of Attention

**Sillystarshine: Maybe a little cousin could stay with them and they can just either be thick as thieves or Rachel could be jealous or think the little cousin is taking all of her mothers' attention from her.**

**A bit of a longer chapter, thank you so much for the prompt.**

**I'm working on like ten at a time; the ones that get posted are obviously just the ones I finished first xD**

**I have a couple of people to answer:**

**first to the guest who accidentally redid prompts: it's totally fine, I was just making sure everyone knew that they didn't have to. xD It's all good.**

**Next, to answer a question: Yes, I do watch The Fosters (and am IN LOVE with it) but can only watch what they have on Netflix, because I don't get the channel. So no spoilers, please! xD**

**Finally, to address another point: Yes, I had considered turning Welcome to NYADA into a different story, but I've already posted 2 chapters in this one, and it's part of this AU and I really think making it another story would just make things more difficult and confusing than they need to be so as long as it's alright with everyone, I'm going to keep it a mini series in this and just break it off into many many parts. That sound okay?**

**Hope you like this chatper!**

**Oh and I don't own Cinderella or Snow White or Funny Girl or The Little Mermaid, blah blah blah.**

**With love always, Hayley**

* * *

**Center of Attention**

"Shelby! Where am I supposed to put this?" Cassandra held up a box full of her books and Shelby sighed. Since when did Cassie ever actually take the time to read a novel anyways? They were probably all dance or theatre books. It wasn't as if Shelby didn't have enough of those.

"We'll have to make room for them on the big bookshelf, sweetheart, give me a minute okay?"

It was going to be a very busy and stress-filled week for everyone. Not only was it the week that Cassie was actually moving in with Shelby and Rachel (she had moved out of her loft in Soho that day and all of her boxes were finally at Shelby's. Which was now also hers. It was going to be a long and confusing process), but it was also the week that Cassie and Shelby had agreed to watch Rachel's cousin (on Shelby's side, of course) Ashleigh. Her parents would be gone on business for the week, and had absolutely no one else to watch her.

Thank god it was NYADA's middle-of-the-year break right now; which had coincidentally been why Cassie chose that week to move in, because she knew she'd have the time to unpack things.

Shelby was in Rachel's room, dragging out a spare twin bed and pushing it up against the opposite wall of Rachel's bed. The spare twin bed had come from the fact that Rachel's bed was actually a bunk bed, and they had taken the top off years ago because Rachel only wanted to sleep on the bottom anyways.

"Why do I have to share my room?" Rachel complained. "We HAVE a guest room!"

The five year old did not like sharing things, she didn't know her cousin Ashleigh very well-they had only met a few times when the girls were younger, and wouldn't even really be meeting now if her parents' business trip wasn't so important. Shelby didn't really get along with most people in her family, but she had a soft spot in her heart for her older sister, Caitlyn. She was the only person Shelby had when she was younger, and was the only family member she had that she could actually stand to be around. They just never got to see each other because both families were usually so busy.

"Because, Rachel. Ashleigh is your age, too, and you need to get to know each other better and be NICE to each other. You're going to be spending a lot of time together this week, so you'd better put on a nicer face and a better attitude. She's never been away from her parents for such a long time, and she's probably very scared."

Rachel crossed her arms over her chest and Shelby sighed. "Rachel Corcoran, I mean it. Maybe the two of you will even become friends over the week."

"Doubt it." Rachel muttered. _She probably doesn't even like Broadway._

This whole concept concerned Cassie and Shelby slightly. Rachel had never had to share her mothers' attention, and they really weren't sure how she'd deal with it.

With a sigh, Shelby finished making Ashleigh's temporary bed. _I suppose we'll just have to find out._

She stood, kissed Rachel's forehead, and walked out of the room to find Cassie, lying on the couch, half-asleep. Her lover had been so exhausted the past couple of days. She'd done a lot of stress dancing and she knew it was exhausting to pack all of these boxes. On top of this, Cassie wasn't a kid person and Shelby wasn't sure how her lover would be able to handle 2 little girls. She did well with Santana, but she had known San since she was really little. She'd never met Ashleigh. Besides that, she also had all of these boxes to unpack.

Slowly, Shelby climbed on top of Cassie until she was in between the couch and Cassie, wrapped around her tightly. She placed a soft kiss on Cassie's ear and Cassie hummed out an, "Mmm."

"Are you sure you're okay with all of this?" Shelby whispered to her.

Cass fluttered one eye open and glimpsed over at Shelby behind her. "I am perfectly okay with this position that we are currently in."

She felt Shelby laugh against her back then melt into her. "You know that's not what I meant. Kids aren't your thing."

"I do fine with Rachel—"

"You do great with Rachel, and Santana. But I know little people make you uncomfortable."

"Little people," Cass laughed lightly. "I'm okay with this, Shelby, I promise, I would've told you if I wasn't."

"Okay," Shelby just held her for a minute and let her lips rest on Cassie's cheek. "I love you," she mumbled against Cassie's skin.

"I love you too, crazy," Cass laughed. "Can I sleep now?"

"Mmm. You don't have much time to."

"Then shhhhhh," Cassie chuckled deeply and softly and eventually her breathing relaxed as did her muscles and she was asleep in Shelby's arms.

Rachel stayed in her room, Shelby hoped not getting into trouble. She couldn't move or speak now or she would wake Cassie.

(Rachel hadn't been getting into trouble—she was just cleaning her room the rest of the way and listening to The Phantom of the Opera music).

After about 45 minutes had gone by, the doorbell rang. Rachel yelled from her room, "MOMMY! DOORBELL!"

Cassie jumped, startled, and Shelby held on to her so she wouldn't fall off of the couch (it was a miracle they both fit on it in this position anyways—it was not a very big couch). Shelby let out an amused little laugh before kissing Cassie's cheek. "Morning, sleeping beauty."

"Have you just been lying here with me this whole time?" Cassie asked so innocently and groggily. Shelby loved her innocent "I just woke up" state.

"Am I not allowed to just lie with you?" Shelby whispered.

The doorbell rang again and Cassie moved so Shelby could get up and answer it.

"Hey, Cait," Shelby hugged her sister tightly after swinging the door open. "It's been way too long."

"I know, we just get so busy…" Caitlyn hugged her little sister. "I've missed you so much Shelby. You have no idea how much this means to me, thank you. We'll catch up soon, okay? I promise."

Ashleigh stood behind her mother, her hands folded in front of her, somewhat shyly.

"Hi, Ashleigh," Shelby said kindly.

"Hi," Ashleigh gave her aunt a small smile. Cassie, after fixing her hair (Shelby had played with it while she was sleeping, apparently), walked up behind her girlfriend with a small smile.

"Hey," she said kindly to Shelby's family members. Shelby wrapped her arm around Cassie's waist.

"This is my partner, Cassandra," Shelby introduced her to her sister and niece. She was often very careful about the way she and Cassie did things around her family—most of her family was not so approving, and her sister really had no idea about any of it due to the severe lack of contact between them.

Caitlyn raised her eyebrows, clearly quite shocked, before giving a soft smile. "Hello, Cassandra," she held her hand out and Cass shook it. "I trust you're good to my sister?"

"The best," Shelby answered for her. Cass gave her a small smile and Caitlyn smiled back.

"Good." Before turning to her daughter and giving her a big hug and a kiss. "I love you, Ashleigh. Be good for Aunt Shelby and Aunt Cassandra, okay?"

Cassie's insides exploded. Aunt Cassandra. A part of Shelby's family was actually acknowledging her existence? In a _good_ way? Holy hell. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all.

"Okay," Ashleigh said. Shelby took Ashleigh's suitcase for her and Cass took her pillow and blanket. "I love you too, Mom," she looked up at her mom and smiled. Caitlyn placed a kiss on her daughter's forehead before thanking Shelby and Cass again and walking back out the door. Shelby and Cass gave Ashleigh a smile and walked towards Rachel's room.

"You'll be staying in our daughter Rachel's room," Shelby said as they walked.

Ashleigh paused slightly at the word "our" but just let it go. When Shelby had called Cassandra her partner, she didn't really understand that it meant they were together. She just figured Cass was another one of Shelby's sisters or something that she'd never met. Even though they didn't really look alike. Maybe they were sisters like her mom and her aunt Steph—they weren't REALLY sisters, but they were best friends, so she considered Steph her aunt Steph.

She walked into Rachel's bedroom, following her aunts as they put her stuff on the spare bed. Rachel looked up from what she was doing on her bed—she had had her earphones in, and was still in fact listening to The Phantom of the Opera. She pulled her headphones down and they rested on her neck as she stared at her cousin.

Ashleigh was clearly related to Shelby—she had the long brown hair, and green eyes—but that was really the only resemblance. She looked a lot more like her dad. She had a rounder face and freckles and a different bone structure.

Shelby looked at the two girls and smiled. "You can talk to each other, you know." She laughed lightly. "Get to know each other, you'll be living with each other for about a week."

With that, Shelby and Cassandra left the room. Rachel looked at Ashleigh some more before saying,

"Hi, I'm Rachel."

"I'm Ashleigh," Ashleigh smiled at her softly, shyly.

"Do you sing?" Rachel wondered.

Ashleigh shook her head. "But I play violin!" she pointed over to her violin case.

Rachel raised an impressed eyebrow. Fancy. Maybe she could like this girl.

The two got to talking and it wasn't long before Shelby called them out of the bedroom for dinner. Cass got everyone water as the girls sat up at the food counter/island thing. Shelby put their plates out in front of them and turned to set hers and Cassie's down too. Cass got her some water and she smiled at her, pecking her lips softly in a silent thanks.

Ashleigh's eyes widened. Her mom and her Aunt Steph never did _that_.

She whispered to Rachel, "Why did they just kiss?"

Rachel shrugged. "Because that's what mommies do." She said it in a "duh" way and Ashleigh was still very confused but didn't continue to talk about it.

They ate dinner and afterwards Shelby asked the girls if they wanted to watch a movie. They let Ashleigh pick, since she was the guest. She decided on The Little Mermaid, which was fine by Rachel—at least it had music in it. The girls sat cross legged on the floor (even though there were chairs available) and Shelby and Cassie cuddled on the couch—Cass had her legs wrapped around Shelby, Shelby's back pressed to her chest. Ashleigh didn't notice this until she got up to get her water. Then she froze and looked at them. Cassie laughed softly,

"Hey, Ashleigh. Can we help you?" she wondered.

"You two kiss AND hold each other and stuff?" she was so lost. She had never seen 2 girls together, or 2 boys for that matter. She just didn't understand.

"Don't your parents?" Rachel got immediately defensive, because it was something she was used to having to do.

Cass gave Rachel a fleeting condescending look. "Rach, you don't have to get so defensive, she just doesn't understand Mommy's relationship with me."

Shelby answered Ashleigh's question, "Cassandra and I are together, Ashleigh. You know how your Mommy and Daddy are together? That's how Cassandra and I are."

"…but you're both girls. So…which one of you would be the daddy?"

Cassie actually let out a laugh. She and Shelby had never really thought about that. They were both pretty girly, so they had never actually considered one of them being the "daddy". "Um, I guess I would," Cass said. This made Shelby laugh now.

"We're both the mommy, sweetheart," she tried to explain. "I know it's sort of confusing, but that's just how we are."

"Well okay." Ashleigh shrugged and went out to the kitchen to finally get her drink of water, then went and sat back down next to Rachel, cross legged, like the conversation hadn't happened.

Shelby and Cass exchanged an amused look and continued to watch the movie.

"Well that happened," Cass whispered into Shelby's ear. Shelby smiled and Cass pulled her closer and Ariel and Rachel sang,

"_Someday I'll be, part of your world."_

"You sing really pretty, Rachel," Ashleigh said when the movie was over.

"Thanks!" Rachel got excited because they were talking about music. "I bet you play violin really good, too!"

"You play violin?" Shelby wondered, impressed.

"Yeah," Ashleigh smiled shyly again. "I'm not perfect at it yet, but there's a song I've been working on with my teacher."

"Nobody's perfect," Shelby said kindly.

"Will you play it for us?!" Rachel beamed, getting on her knees all excitedly.

With a nod, Ashleigh went to Rachel's room to get her violin out.

After getting things ready, she put it up to her chin. Cass held tight to Shelby and kissed her cheek. Both women were absolutely taken aback by the excellence of music that came pouring out of the violin in Ashleigh's arms. They had not expected the five year old to be so amazing with such a complex instrument.

When she was done, Shelby nearly had tears in her eyes.

"Oh my god," Cassie stated, clapping her hands together.

Shelby clapped too, "That was BEAUTIFUL."

Rachel had her mouth gaping open. "Woah." She was instantly jealous. Now she wanted to learn how to play the violin too!

After which Shelby asked Ashleigh if she wanted to do that professionally when she grew up and Ashleigh just shrugged. Violin was effortless to her-more like a hobby than a passion, really, and she hadn't given it thought. Being five, she still had plenty of time to consider.

Rachel wasn't sure what to think of her musically inclined cousin. She was jealous, really, that the music came so easy to Ashleigh. Rachel spent every second of every day working hard and rehearsing what she had to do and Ashleigh just shrugged it off like it was so casual. It bothered her, admittedly, just a little bit.

. . .

It was 11:30 and Shelby and Cassie were lying in bed, talking and cuddling with each other. Shelby had Cass in her embrace, their hands linked together as Cassie's back was facing Shelby's chest. Shelby had her head resting partly on Cassie's shoulder as they talked.

"Maybe we shouldn't be so...touchy in front of Ashleigh," Cass mentioned, softly. "I'm not sure she's so into the idea."

"I think she was just confused, Cassie. You know how my family is, and my sister seemed very surprised. I doubt if Ashleigh's ever met anyone who's gay before now..." Shelby answered in thought.

"Great," Cassie sighed and pulled Shelby's hand up to her lips to place light kisses on Shelby's fingers. "She can go home and tell her disapproving mother the wonderful tales of her lesbian aunts' adventures. I'm sure that'll start some talk in your family."

She felt Shelby laugh against her. "Perhaps," she agreed. "I think Caitlyn's a little more accepting, though."

Her "observation" was greeted with a disbelieving silence so she continued. "Maybe she doesn't agree with it, but she respects me enough to love me no matter what, which is slightly more than my parents did, so I'm going to try to convince myself that she's slightly more accepting than they are."

"She did call me Aunt Cassandra," Cassie practically beamed. She adored the fact that Caitlyn had made her feel like a part of the family-like an equal. Not many people (in either Shelby or Cassie's family) ever did that much anymore.

"You ARE Aunt Cassandra," Shelby readjusted her position, tangling her legs with Cassie's. Cass let out a pleasure-filled sigh.

"Yeah, I guess I am, huh?" there was a moment of silence between them before she continued, asking, "Do you think they'll get along?"

Shelby thought about it. "I think Rachel's jealous of her violin playing."

"Hmm. Should we be worried about jealousy fights?" Cass questioned.

She yawned and her eyes scanned the clock. They had been talking for 2 hours.

"We'll just keep an eye out," Shelby said.

"Kay," Cass mumbled and her muscles and breathing relaxed as sleep took hold of her first once more.

. . .

By the time day 2 had rolled around, Rachel and Ashleigh were fighting like cats and dogs, Cassie had virtually nothing unpacked, and Shelby was losing all control.

"Broadway is stupid!" Ashleigh yelled. "All they do is sing and dance! Anyone can sing and dance!"

"Nuh uh! Just because you play violin doesn't mean you're perfect at everything!" Rachel shot back. The two girls stormed through the house. Cass had her head in her hands, and was leaning against the front of the couch, sitting on the floor, never wanting to see another box ever again.

Shelby was sitting next to her.

"Girls! Can you please stop fighting?" she begged.

"Ashleigh won't let me practice Funny Girl because she wants to practice her stupid violin." Rachel pouted, crossing her arms over her chest.

"My mom is gonna kill me if I don't practice my violin!" Ashleigh insisted. Shelby sighed. She knew that Ashleigh might be exaggerating but only a little bit-her family members were sort of hardcore about the whole perfection thing.

"Rachel, let Ashleigh practice for a little bit, okay?"

Rachel stomped her foot. "UGH! Why do you love her more?!" and ran off to her room, slamming the door shut behind her.

Ashleigh ran after her. "RACHEL, I NEED MY VIOLIN!"

Rachel opened the door, set the violin case outside of it, and slammed it shut again.

Cass rubbed her temples and Shelby kissed her forehead. "I'm sorry," she whispered.

"We need to go talk to Rachel," was Cassie's response.

With a nod, Shelby said, "But she needs to cool down first."

Cass reached into the box she had been working on, pulled out a handful of movies, and tossed them to the side. "Does that count as unpacked?" she asked, looking over at Shelby hopefully. Shelby smirked and Cass continued, "Why would Rach think we love Ashleigh more?"

This made Shelby shrug, for she was just as perplexed about the whole thing as Cassandra was. "I don't know, she's used to getting all of our attention and now she only gets half of it?" she guessed.

"Please tell me that this isn't going to be happening all week." Cass sighed.

"You still fine with the little people?" Shelby asked condescendingly. Cassandra rolled her eyes, stood up, and put her movies on the movie shelf.

The two women noticed that the violin music had stopped, and felt that the silence could not be a good thing. They stood and practically ran to Rachel's room where Rachel had started yelling and Ashleigh had started yelling back.

"She BROKE my Ariel doll!" Rachel yelled.

"I didn't MEAN to break her," Ashleigh yelled back. "I was just LOOKING! If you hadn't tried to RIP her out of my hands-"

"If you were LOOKING, why was she in your HANDS?!"

Cass double blinked. These were some very advanced 5 year olds. These kids were intense. "Enough!" she yelled louder than both of them and they both fell silent. She thought maybe Shelby should continue, because she didn't want to say something or yell something she would later on regret. But Shelby was all silence and waited for Cassandra to keep going. She took a deep breath and crouched down to the kids' level. She took the Ariel doll.

"Rachel, Ariel's head can be put back on, calm down about the doll. From what I've heard it was an accident."

Rachel sniffed. "Why are you always taking her side?" she asked.

"We'll talk about this in a minute." she said. "Privately. But right now I need to talk to both of you."

The girls nodded.

"The two of you, whether you like it or not, are family, and you need to start acting like it. Family is a really important thing, you guys. It's about love and acceptance and friendship. Family shouldn't be about fighting and screaming and hitting. All right? You two have the whole rest of the week to be a real family, and then you won't see each other for a long time. So you need to start to get along, okay? Find a common ground."

Shelby had her arms crossed over her chest, impressed at her lover, but also sad for her. She knew that that speech had come from somewhere-it didn't just pop out of thin air. That speech meant something serious to Cassandra.

"Now, Rachel, your mom and I are going to talk to you alone, okay? Ashleigh can you go find something to do for a little bit?" Ashleigh nodded her head and walked out the door. Shelby kissed the top of her head on the way out.

They sat Rachel on the bed and sat on either side of her as they talked.

"Rachel," Cass started. "I'm sorry it seems like we're picking sides,"

"And we're sorry it seems like it's always Ashleigh's side," Shelby added.

"But we're just trying to get the two of you to get along. We know one of the biggest reasons that you two are arguing is because you don't have our complete attention like you're used to, and we're sorry about that. But not everything can always be about you, okay?"

Rachel sniffed again. "Okay."

"We understand the two of you don't have a lot in common, but it's only been 2 days," Shelby added. "So go find something you can have fun talking about or doing okay? No more hating each other."

"Okay."

Shelby kissed Rachel's cheek and Cass kissed the other. "We love you, Rachel."

"I love you, too." and she ran off to go find Ashleigh. Cass leaned back on Rachel's bed and let out a groan once she had left. Shelby fell back next to her.

"You did a pretty good job with that, for not being a kid person," Shelby nudged her side.

"Family shouldn't fight," Cassandra said, sitting up and holding Shelby's hand before kissing it and leaving the room.

Shelby watched her leave, aware of why she was saying that, and feeling sorry that Cassandra's childhood had been so rough-particularly when it came to family.

. . .

Finally, on day 4, it had gotten to the point where Cass was unpacking things in the bedroom. Clothes, perfumes, shoes, etc.

Shelby sat on their bed and watched as Cass hung up some of her clothes. She would have been helping her, if Cass hadn't told her not to. "Just like you, I have to put my things away my way," she had explained. Shelby had just thrown her hands up in that official "I'm innocent" gesture and let Cassie do whatever it was Cassie was doing.

The little girls had come up with some sort of peace treaty, and hadn't fought since the day of the talk and the Ariel doll. Ashleigh had even been learning the instrumental part to Funny Girl on her violin so Rachel could sing it while she played. They discovered that they both liked art-just simply drawing and making crafts and things-and they both really liked to read, so they bonded over that.

Right now they were in Rachel's room, coloring in Rachel's princess coloring books and listening to music. Peacefully. Thank god.

Cass pulled a black, lacy slip out of a box and Shelby's eyes lit up. "Mmm, why have I never seen you in this?" Shelby demanded, sitting up on her knees and crawling over towards Cassandra. Cass laughed.

"Um, because it's a slip. You wear it UNDER things."

"You wear bras and panties under things, but I've seen all of those," Shelby pointed out.

"Not all," Cass raised her eyebrow and instantly made Shelby suspicious.

"Hmm, well maybe you'll have to do a sort of fashion show for me later?" her tone was much more hopeful than it was suggestive. Suggestiveness was Cassie's area of expertise.

"Mmm. Perhaps." was the only response Shelby got. Shelby dry swallowed and Cassandra laughed at her obvious disappointment. "How about not when we have 2 tiny children who could possibly be scarred for life running around the house, okay?"

Shelby pouted slightly, but knew Cassandra was right. "Okay," she rolled her eyes and Cass kissed her forehead and whispered, "Or I can wear it to bed tonight,"

Shelby nodded.

. . .

"So your favorite princess is Ariel?" Ashleigh was coloring a picture of Belle and Rachel was coloring a second picture of the little mermaid.

"Mmhmm," Rachel nodded, putting down the red crayon and picking up the purple one. "She's a dreamer."

"So is Cinderella, and Belle, and Jasmine-"

"Yeah, but Ariel's different from the others," Rachel said in a "duh" sort of way. "She's a mermaid. She's special. Why, who's your favorite?"

"I like them all," Ashleigh responded. "No favorites."

"Hmm," Rachel looked at her cousin suspiciously for a second. "Well...okay."

"You're not bad, Rachel," Ashleigh said with a smile.

Rachel smiled back. "You either." she answered.

Maybe having her cousin around wasn't such a bad thing after all. She loved Santana and Kurt but she knew almost everything about them. It was nice to get to know someone new.

. . .

That night after dinner, Ashleigh and Rachel decided they wanted to watch Cinderella. Shelby and Cassie were cleaning up in the kitchen, and, once the dishes were finished and a song was playing on the movie, Cass extended her hand to Shelby. "Can I have this dance?" she asked.

Shelby smiled softly and took Cassie's hand as Cassie led her in a sort of waltz and the song played,

_"A dream is a wish your heart makes, when you're fast asleep..."_

They waltzed around the kitchen before making their way out to the living room. Rachel and Ashleigh giggled at them before they got up and started dancing around, too.

_Now this,_ Cassie thought to herself with a huge smile and a warming of her heart. _This is what a family should look like._

. . .

By day six, all of Cassandra's things were officially unpacked. Shelby and Cassie were quite surprised by the cute little friendship that had formed between young little cousins, and they were also surprised by how brave Ashleigh was about not seeing her mommy or daddy.

There were one or two nights when she got upset that they didn't get to tell her goodnight, but Shelby and Cassie kissed her and hugged her and told her goodnight and she slept in Rachel's bed with Rachel so she wouldn't feel so alone.

They decided to take the girls to the park for the day, and while they were there, they watched as the two young girls played princesses for a solid hour and a half.

They were the only people at the park, so the girls were happy to have free range and open imagination.

"I'm Princess Snow White," Ashleigh said, "Fairest of them all and I will find my Prince Charming,"

"And I'm Princess Ariel," Rachel said. "Ruler of the sea and I will find my Prince Eric," she thought about it and added, "Or Princess Erica."

Cass laughed into Shelby shoulder and Shelby grinned from ear to ear. This moment was so priceless-so special. They watched the two little girls run around together. Occasionally hearing what they were saying.

"Quick! We have to get my kingdom's trident before the Evil Queen and Ursula come together to try to kill us!" Rachel yelled.

"Why, oh why, did I have to be fairest of them all?" Ashleigh shivered in place.

"And why did Ursula have to be so jealous of my beautiful singing voice?" Rachel exclaimed.

Shelby shook her head and smiled and Cass laughed, her heart content.

. . .

"Ashleigh, your mom's here," Shelby called out to her niece.

"Mommy!" Ashleigh ran out of Rachel's room and into her mother's arms. "I missed you!" she exclaimed.

"I missed you too, pumpkin," Caitlyn hugged her daughter tightly, peppering her cheeks with kisses. "Were you good for your Aunts?"

Shelby nodded. "She was great, once she and Rachel started to get to know each other."

Caitlyn eyed Shelby. "She didn't give you any trouble?" she worried.

Cassandra shook her head. "She was a perfect little princess," Cass assured her. "There was one day we weren't sure she and Rachel would ever become friends but that quickly changed. And she's a very talented violinist."

"Thank you," Caitlyn smiled. "She practices all the time. I'm glad she was good for you." she set Ashleigh down and Ashleigh ran to Rachel's room to get her things. "I wish I could stay and talk to you, Shelby, but we have too much to do today,"

"I understand," Shelby said with a soft smile. "I know how busy you are."

"But I promise someday soon we'll all go out for lunch or something. Does that sound okay?"

Shelby nodded. "Sure, whatever works."

Cass raised an eyebrow. She had never seen Shelby so easy going, let alone letting someone else call the shots. Besides maybe her parents.

"Great," Caitlyn hugged Shelby tightly. "Thank you for watching her for the week. It meant the world to me, and from what I can see, she and Rachel became pretty good friends."

Shelby nodded as Ashleigh and Rachel walked towards them and then buried each other in a tight hug.

"If anything, you'll have to come over so they can play for a little while," Shelby suggested. Caitlyn nodded.

"Definitely. Well we'd better go, pumpkin, daddy's waiting in the cab."

"Okay," Ashleigh said, happy to go home and see her parents but sad that she had to leave Rachel and Cassandra and Shelby. She hadn't had so much fun in a long time, and with them it actually felt like a family. Her parents, though she loved them, were always busy. She was actually jealous of Rachel-her mommies always made time for her. "Bye Rachel," she hugged Rachel tightly once more. "I'll miss you!"

"Ashleigh has an email address," Caitlyn said. "Does Rachel? Maybe they can write to each other."

Cass and Shelby looked at each other. "I think maybe that could be arranged," Shelby said slowly. "We'll talk about it,"

Caitlyn gave them Ashleigh's address and Ashleigh jumped up into Shelby's arms. "Bye, Aunt Shelby," she hugged her tightly. "Thank you."

"Of course, Ashleigh. I love you."

"Love you too." then she jumped up into Cassie's arms and the same words were exchanged. Cass hugged the little girl tightly. Maybe she could be a kid kind of person.

Once they left, Rachel retreated back to her room and Shelby and Cassandra sat on the couch, cuddled up against each other. She knew she was about to tread on thin ice, but Cassandra couldn't help but whisper, "That didn't look like family to me."

Shelby's wall went up, even though it was only Cassie. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Please don't do this," Cass intertwined her fingers in Shelby's and wrapped her legs around her as well. "You can talk to me, Shelby, you know that."

"There's nothing to talk about," Shelby replied lamely. "Caitlyn's always busy, we never talk."

"You're just her baby sitter, not her sister. You never talk-that's not family."

"I don't know what you want me to do about it, Cass." Shelby said softly.

"Nothing, sweetheart," Cass kissed her cheek softly. "There's nothing you can do. All I'm saying is, her little daughter shouldn't have to be sad about going home, because her parents are too busy for her."

"I know." Shelby's voice nearly broke and Cass held her tighter as she whispered,

"That was you, wasn't it?"

A single tear slipped down Shelby's cheek and Cass kissed it away. "Yes." she responded.

"Oh, Shelby," Cass held her lover so tenderly, so warmly. "You have a family now, okay?"

"Okay," she whispered.

"We'll never be too busy for you."

"Okay,"

"We love you so much."

"I love you too."

And thankfully, Cassandra was telling the truth. Shelby was never neglected by her. Cass would always have time for her.

Something her blood family never did.

But what Shelby and Cassandra both came to realize was that sometimes family didn't mean blood related. Sometimes, family just meant love.

And Rachel learned that sometimes sharing the spotlight could actually be fun.


	26. Pregnant Shelby, Boy or Girl

**Hello, my lovelies. I'm so sorry that this chapter is so short, and that I haven't updated in what seems like years. I got really busy with family and what not, and my sister is staying with me for 2 weeks now (and my birthday is in 5 days so idk what we're really doing for that) and my summer just got way out of hand. xD plus i'm suffering serious writers block and it's driving me insane because I REALLY want to write.**

**I'm working on 3 other prompts simultaneously and one of them is rather long, it's just that it didn't get finished before this one did.**

**Also, just to warn you all, I go back to school on September 2, and my schedule is CRAZY this year, so I'll try to write as much as I can but I can never predict when I'm going to upload (sort of like now). Like right now i'm having issues with my college classes and ugh things are just crazy. :/**

**But I'm still taking prompts and just writing them down to work on whenever I can, so please don't stop giving them to me! xo**

**Special thanks to my sister, Pyxis, for helping me through my seemingly constant writers block, keeping me inspired and imaginative, and always equipping me with more tea. xD and also for coming up with the oranges and peanut butter thing (which she swears up and down actually tastes good).**

**with Love, Hayley**

_**Madison: ooh you should write about when Shelby was pregnant with Rachel.**_

* * *

**Pregnant Shelby, Boy or Girl**

**Cassie:**

"Shelby, sweetheart, you have to wake up," trying to wake a pregnant Shelby Corcoran up from a mid-day nap is like asking someone to wake a sleeping bear. A starving, sleep deprived, hormonal, grizzly bear.

"No," Shelby moaned, turning on her side and pulling the comforter over her face.

3 months. She's only 3 months pregnant. I have 6 more months of this.

"Shelby, come on," I sit down on the bed next to her and rub her arm, (which was hard to locate, considering she's drowning herself in blanket). "We have to go to the doctor today. In an hour. I should've started this earlier, I know how hard it is to wake you..."

"Fuck you. I'll kill you." Shelby mumbles in response.

I let out a low chuckle. She's so moody. I pull her comforter off of her head and kiss her temple softly. "I love you, too."

"I do love you," Shelby lets me know, stretching out her legs. "Most days."

"Come on, the doctor said you can have two cups of caffeine a day, I'll make you a cup of coffee, you can shower, and then we'll leave."

Thank god they're letting her have coffee-she sort of has what I like to call an addiction-though she claims she can go a day without caffeine, I'VE certainly never seen it done.

"Fine," Shelby grumbles, slowly climbing out from under her blankets. She pouts her lip out as soon as her body hits the cold and wraps her arms around me tightly. I try to move my arm out of her grasp and her grip tightens. "No," she mumbles. "You're warm."

A deep chuckle emits from my throat. "Shelbs, I can't do all of this with you this morning, I have to get ready, too."

Shelby does not relent and I kiss her cheek. "What do you want me to do, Shelbs, I can't take a shower with you."

With wide, begging eyes and raised eyebrows she says, "Why not?!"

I roll my eyes at her with a light laugh and pry her hands off of me. "Get off of me you crazy hormonal freak."

We walk towards the bathroom and strip. The rest was a hassle of getting her out of the hot water afterwards.

"But I don't WANT to go to the doctors!" Shelby protests, making it really hard to say no as she runs her hands down my bare arms and the hot water runs down our backs.

I knew all along that that's what all of this has been about. Shelby LOATHES doctors, dentists, nurses, and the like, mainly because (besides me, of course,) other people touching her body is not her favorite thing in the world. Also, she likes being in control of what she's doing and what's happening to her, and the more she knows about what's going on with her body, the less she can control and blah blah blah. It's a rant I've heard multiple times and I know that if I let her say all of it today, it sure as hell won't even be the LAST time I hear it.

"I know, sweetheart," I say, trying to be comforting. But Shelby will have none of that shit.

"No you don't, you don't have a baby inside of you."

"I could've," I point out for the gazillionth time.

"But you don't."

This isn't the first time we've had this conversation, either, but I will admit, it is the first time we had this conversation in the shower. I place my hands on her stomach and she stiffens, then slowly relaxes into my touch. But that's just Shelby. She's not used to letting people touch her, and even after a couple of years with me, she still has a hard time even letting me do so. But she's slowly starting to get used to it. I just had to give her time. Just like she had to do the same with me.

"Shelby, sweetheart, the doctor just needs to do a routine check up to see how the baby is doing-"

"Yes, I understand that, but why do I have to be there for that?"

I shoot her a condescending glance before getting down on my knees and placing a soft kiss on her stomach, and standing again. "You're so adorable and childish."

"I'm pregnant." she states the obvious.

I laugh. "I'm well aware."

Finally, I somehow manage to coax her out of the hot shower and into some dry, decent clothes. I tell her to eat breakfast while I'm changing. When I make it back out to the living room, dressed and hair and makeup done, I find Shelby sitting up at the counter, eating oranges and peanut butter for breakfast. I stare at her, quizzically. Apparently she's started to get cravings for some weird ass shit.

"It tastes good!" she protests after swallowing. She smears another small slab of peanut butter on another piece of orange and offers it out towards me. "Try it, Cassie!"

I scrunch my nose at her. "I'd rather not. Thanks though." I grab an apple from the counter and nibble on it. Now Shelby's staring at me.

"You're eating an APPLE?!" she questions.

I shrug. True, I don't often eat super healthy things like fruits and vegetables. I like my meats. And my carbs. (And as a dancer, as long as I eat something healthy every once in a while-which will happen because I'm over at Shelby's so often-I can afford it). "Guess I'm in a fruity mood."

"Since when?" Shelby snarls teasingly.

"Since you got pregnant and banned junk food from your house."

Shelby eyes me suspiciously. "Junk food has always been banned from my house."

"As far as you're concerned..." I mumbled under my breath.

"What?"

"Nothing, darling, are you ready to go yet?"

"Do we have to?" Shelby sighs, standing up and raising a suggestive eyebrow, trying to distract me. No, damn it. I say in my head, forcefully. No your sexy little body gliding towards me like that will not change my mind. No, your hand sliding up my leg like that and resting on my ass all handsy will NOT change my mind. No, your lips getting so close to mind will not change my-

I melt into her and back up. "Shelby, you have to go."

"I don't want the doctor touching me."

"You let me touch you."

"You're different."

"She's only trying to help you."

"Like I fucking care."

"Then do it for the baby? For our cute little nameless baby?"

That gets to her. She sighs heavily and slaps my ass lightly. I will my body not to react at the motion but it does anyways. She backs away and says, dejectedly, "Fine, take me to the fucking doctor then."

"You're so foul mouthed," I tease, grabbing the keys off of the wall next to the door and leading her out it. "You know the baby can hear everything you say."

"Good." Shelby pouted with a small laugh.

"I hope the baby turns out just like you," I tell her matter-of-factly, "So you realize how much of a pain in the ass you can be."

"Cassie!" she spins around and puts a finger to my lips. I kiss it softly. "Be careful what you say," she taunts. "The baby can hear you! You shouldn't use such FOUL language."

. . .

She sits on the prenatal care table, gently swinging her legs. "I wish they would hurry up with these things, by the time she gets here the baby will have already come!"

"You are seriously the most impatient human being I have ever met," I laugh at her. "And you of all people know that THAT is saying something."

Shelby rolls her eyes at me. "We've been here forever."

I click my phone and unlock it. "We've been here ten minutes. You're so impatient."

"I learned from the best."

I raise an eyebrow and her lips, which were pressed into a fine line, spread into a small smile.

"Are you insinuating that because I can sometimes be a little impatient, you developed a habit of always being so?" I ask her.

She just smiles at me and doesn't answer.

The appointment doesn't take as long as Shelby insists it was. Once the doctor's done with the ultra sound, she presses her hands together and says, "I can't be 100% positive about it yet, since you're only a little over 12 weeks, but we can usually tell by now if there's a possibility of the baby being a boy or girl."

That spikes Shelby's interest. She raises her eyebrows and grabs my hands.

We're gonna get to know the sex of the baby? Already? Well, probably, at least? That's still pretty soon. And pretty fucking amazing.

"Well?" Shelby says, impatient and admittedly giddy. "Is the baby most likely a boy or girl?"

"I'm thinking you're having a girl." she points out that by now they can usually see some sign of male genitals but that she can't on our baby's ultra sound.

I grin from ear to ear-not that I thought I cared what the sex of the baby was going to be, but I'm admittedly pretty excited that the baby is a girl-probably. "A girl, Shelby. We're going to have a girl, probably!"

Shelby smiles back and plays with my hand with her fingers, her look that was originally gleeful turning into one of absolute adoration as she looks into my eyes. "We're having a baby girl." her voice is warm and loving and she reaches her lips up to touch mine. "I'm sorry I'm such a handful," she says when we break apart. The doctor leaves the room to get Shelby's charts and whatever together so we can go.

"It's okay," I chide, kissing her cheek. "You're my handful."

She thinks about that for a second. "Pretty soon we're going to have our own little handful to take care of. Do you think we're ready for it?" she looks up at me, curiously.

It's a valid question. We have only been together for 2 years, we aren't married, and we don't even live together.

But when you cut out all of those factors and just take a look at our lives-how much we love each other, how well we work together, how excited we are to just be having this conversation, I have to answer with yes. Yes, I do think we're ready for it.

For our little girl.

For our little star.


	27. How Do You Know?

**EllyBelly07: Rachel asked Shelby/ Cassandra how they knew when they were into girls.**

**I had a lot of fun with this one, even if it did take me longer than it should have :) Thank you so much for the prompt, and please if you have more, let me know!**

**xo, Love always, Hayley**

* * *

**How Do You Know?**

Rachel paced around her bedroom, back and forth back and forth, wondering if she was REALLY about to ask her mothers what she was thinking about asking them. But the question was starting to frighten her, because she was twelve years old now, and starting to have more and more thoughts about Santana. Thoughts that usually aren't "just best friends" thoughts. Like crush sort of thoughts. And that made her curious.

So, with a pounding heart, she made her way out to the living room, where Shelby and Cassie sat on the couch, cuddled against each other.

Cass had her back leaning against Shelby, reading some book Shelby insisted she read, and Shelby was playing with Cass's hair while she did so, then turned her head when she heard Rachel's footsteps coming towards them.

"Hey, sweetie." she smiled. Cass looked up from the book, a little thankful for the distraction-she could never focus on reading one thing for too long. "What's going on? Are you okay?"

"Can I talk to you?" Rachel asked, timidly.

This definitely captured Shelby and Cassie's attention. Since when was Rachel Barbra Corcoran, THEIR daughter, ever timid about anything? Especially if she was just talking to them? Had she done something? Had they?

"Sure, Rach. You can talk to us about anything, you know that," Cass sat up and crossed her legs in front of her. "What's up?"

Rachel very slowly sat on the table in front of her mothers. Usually Shelby would've scolded her for it, but Rachel looked so concerned that the thought to scold her hadn't even crossed Shelby's mind.

"When..." Rachel dry swallowed and bit her lip, looking down at her hands in her lap. "When did you know that you...that you liked...girls...?"

"O-Oh!" Shelby's eyebrows basically skyrocketed. Of all the things she had expected her 12 year old to ask, that was definitely NOT it. Cass pulled off a small little half smile. Their daughter was getting so big.

"Um..." Shelby stumbled. She hadn't been with many girls (or any girls) before Cassandra. Cass hadn't been with anyone besides Shelby, and a couple of one night stands that didn't mean anything. So neither woman really knew how to answer the question. They hadn't known they liked girls, so much as they knew they had fallen for each other.

"Um...well...maybe if you explained-"

"I'm not telling you who it is," she said immediately, hurriedly, nervously.

Shelby and Cassie exchanged a knowing smirk. Rachel didn't have to tell them she was crushing on Santana, it was painfully obvious, no matter how good of a little actress Rachel was.

Cassie rephrased Shelby's question. "Well, do you think you might like girls, Rachel?"

Rachel didn't know why she was so nervous or why this conversation was so awkward, but it just WAS. "Maybe." she mumbled.

"What makes you think that you might?" Shelby wondered, trying her best to NOT make the situation awkward, but knowing it was hard for Rachel. She didn't understand WHY, because it wasn't as if liking girls was anything new to this family, but all the same, if Rachel was somehow uncomfortable, she couldn't help but feel that she and Cass had somehow messed up and wanted to try to help in any way she could.

"It's just..." Rachel blushed. "She gives my stomach butterflies and it's awkward because we're close friends but whenever she touches me-like my arm or something-my heart starts pounding so loudly I'm afraid she'll hear it and I just I don't know what to do about it."

Shelby smiled lightly and Cassie rubbed Rachel's arm comfortingly. "There isn't much you can do about it, Rach," Cass said sympathetically. "A crush is a crush, you know?"

"It's not a crush," Rachel got immediately defensive.

"It sounds like that's what it is, Rach," Shelby said softly. "But it's okay. You know that, don't you? It's okay to have a crush on a girl."

"No it isn't!" Rachel stood and put her hands on her head. "This isn't just any girl. This could ruin everything! Our whole friendship, our everything!"

Cass and Shelby knew she was talking about Santana, but they weren't about to admit that to her. Each tried to think of a solution, but what Rachel was saying had the possibility of being right. If Santana didn't feel the same way, it very well could ruin the friendship they've spent their whole lives building up. But...

"What if she feels the same way that you do?" Shelby suggested. Rachel stopped pacing the room long enough to look at her like she had just suggested that fairy tales were real and she was really Snow White.

"Are you mentally ill?" Rachel questioned.

Cass bit her lip to battle laughter and Shelby answered, stiffly, "Do you want our help or not?"

"Sorry," Rachel mumbled. "I'm just-"

"Nervous, Rachel. We understand that, sweetheart," Cass supplied. "But you don't know that Sa-she won't like you back." she had ALMOST said Santana. Luckily, Rachel hadn't caught that. She was too busy wrapped up in her problem.

"You don't know that she will."

There was a huge silence in which no one said anything before Shelby sighed. "Well you have a few options, Rach. You can tell this girl how you feel about her and hope for the best, or you can continue on with the friendship the way that it is. But I'm going to warn you now that neither way will be very easy. Keeping secrets is never an easy thing to do."

Rachel pondered her options for a little bit and then sighed. "What would you do?" she looked up at her Mama.

Cass shook her head. "I can't tell you what choices to make, Rachel. You just have to go with your gut."

"Is that what you did, Mama? When you got together with Mom?"

This made Shelby and Cass laugh. Without gut instinct, the two women probably would've gotten together long before they did.

"Okay. Let me rephrase that. Go with whatever your HEART is telling you"

"Did you listen to your heart? How did you and Mom get together?"

"That's an awfully long story, Rach," Shelby giggled lightly.

"Can I just hear parts of it?"

Cass smirked and looked at her 12 year old, who was growing up way too fast. She had a little crush. They were talking to her about her crush. Everything was happening so fast. "What do you want to know, Rach?"

"Were you friends before you got together?" she asked, sitting back down, her eyes wide with concentration.

"Well..." Shelby thought about it for a minute. They had been sort of frenemies for a while, before they became friends. "Yes, we were. We were also roommates, in college. For a long time."

"Who approached who with it?" Rachel asked.

Both women blushed. "Um, it was sort of...mutual?" They really didn't know how to answer that question. Shelby kissed Cassie because Cassie pulled Shelby towards her. Neither one had ever actually stopped to think about what they were doing until after the fact. There wasn't an exchange of "I like you, do you like me? Circle yes or no". It was more like, "You're near me and you're really hot and I think I'm going to kiss you okay thanks". And then it turned into a whole bunch of things that Rachel was definitely not old enough to hear about…or even KNOW about.

"I kissed Cass," Shelby finally said. "...after she basically told me to."

Cass dropped her jaw with a grin. "I did not TELL you to."

Shelby turned to Rachel and whispered, "But basically."

"Me saying, "Corcoran, get back here," is not the same thing as me saying, "Hey, babe, can you do me a favor and shove your tongue down my throat?"!" Cassandra defended.

Shelby nearly choked laughing and smacked Cassie's arm playfully meanwhile Rachel cocked her head to the side and grimaced, scrunching her eyebrows and nose.

"Tongue?" she asked. "Ew. I just wanted to kiss her, not swallow her whole."

Cass blushed harder and Shelby had to get up and leave the room she was laughing so hard. Clearing her throat, Cassie continued. "In any case, Rachel, your Mom and I were very very nervous that each other didn't reciprocate feelings for a long time, and then we found out that we really really loved one another. But we could've started our relationship 2 years earlier if we had been honest from the start. Do you get what I'm saying?"

Rach bit her lip. "Yeah, I guess so."

After a minute, Shelby walked back into the living room, not daring to look over at Cassandra for fear of death by laughter again. "I wasn't laughing at you, Rachel, I promise. I was laughing at your crazy Mama."

Cass cast her a playful glare, which Shelby didn't see, since she wasn't looking over at her.

"But I promise we'll support your decision whatever it may be, alright?" Shelby placed a light kiss on Rachel's forehead. "We love you very very much."

Cass kissed her forehead, as well. "Yes," she added. "We do."

"I love you too," Rachel smiled. "But I don't think I'm going to tell her. Not right away."

"And that's fine, baby girl. No one is saying you have to say anything to anyone. That's something you do in your own time, and everyone's different." Shelby let her know.

Rachel nodded. "Can I just never tell her and admire her from afar?"

Cass smiled softly. "But then you could never be with her. Don't you want to be with her someday when you're older?" she could not stress the "SOMEDAY WHEN YOU ARE OLDER" part enough.

"Yes," Rachel sighed. "I really do." then she paused. "It's not an obligation to shove my tongue down her throat, is it?"


	28. Injury

**No one in particular prompted this, it's just something that came to mind...so I wrote it before it left my head.**

**With Love, Hayley**

* * *

**Injury**

Cass was instructing at NYADA. It had been a very long day of nobody doing the right moves and Cassie was getting very anxious to get home, sing a song or two with Rachel, and cuddle up to Shelby. Her mind daydreamed in thoughts about Shelby. She really needed a stress reliever tonight. Maybe press Shelby up against the back wall when Rachel's asleep and have a fun little make out session. One of those passionate, I need you now kind of make out sessions-like the ones they had when they were younger.

She nearly moaned aloud just thinking about it.

But then she drew herself back into reality. Her damned students.

They were practicing catching a girl mid-air and gently, gracefully, placing her back down.

Finally, Cass had had enough.

"You're too stiff, loosen up. It has to be fluid, you are DANCERS, come ON you guys." she rolled her eyes and decided to get into the line of girls being caught. She ran up with grace and was caught well enough, but the graceful "setting her lightly back down part" was yet to be desired.

His grip slid off of her waist while she was still high above his head. She tried in haste to catch herself but he tried to catch her as well and ended up blocking her only safe exit. She smacked against the floor and sucked in a furious breath.

"What the HELL was that?!" she demanded. "Get out of my classroom!"

The boy tried to help her up and she pulled away from him. "GO."

He ran off, frightened.

_Good._ She seethed in her head. _What the hell is he even doing in my class if he can't properly put someone back on solid ground?! _

There was a dead silence and everyone watched as she stood, nearly screamed while putting weight on her ankle but tried not to show it, and leaned on her other leg for support while she reached out for her cane. Thank god she had a cane.

"Are you alright, Miss July?" someone asked, nervously.

"Alright? I'd be a whole hell of a lot better if you learned how to dance, damn it! Class dismissed!"

The students scurried out of the room and she let out a growl of pain and frustration. Her ankle was throbbing like a bitch and-was it supposed to twist that way? She wasn't sure it was supposed to twist that way.

Thank god that was her last class, she would've murdered a room full of more.

She knew there was no way in hell she could walk home, and hailing a taxi meant spending money she didn't have. With a sigh, she knew she'd have to call Shelby. Shelby was going to make a huge fuss over it, she knew, and then she'd be taken to the hospital and...ugh.

All she wanted was a make out session and maybe like, some take-out food or something.

Now she had a broken ankle. Fantastic.

She pulled out her cell and tentatively typed in Shelby's number. She answered on the second ring.

"Hi, baby," Shelby's voice was so full of light and she was clearly having a good day and it made Cassie smile, even through her pain. She didn't want to ruin Shelby's mood.

"Hey, babe," Cassie tried her best to sound cheerful.

"What's going on? Are your classes over with?"

Cass bit her lip. "Um, yeah, Shelbs, I have a bit of a problem."

"Oh dear god." Shelby already started to worry. "What happened?"

"One of my 2 left feet students fucking dropped me."

"Oh my god, Cassie, are you okay?" she could already hear Shelby rummaging for her keys. Shelby took her mouth away from the receiver and yelled out, "Rachel! Grab your jacket and your iPod, we have to go pick up Mama."

She knew Rachel wouldn't go anywhere without her iPod. The 8 year old needed her music and they decided buying her an iPod early on was easier than hearing her throw a fit about it every time they went somewhere that didn't have music.

"I'm fine, Shelby,"

"You're lying," Cass heard the car start through the phone.

"I-"

Baby, can you walk?" Shelby wondered, worriedly.

"I can if I use my cane and my other foot. I think I broke my ankle."

"We're on our way. 5 minutes tops. And stay off that ankle, I mean it!"

"I love you."

"I love you too."

Cass hung up and set to get her stuff together. Moving around, even with the cane, was a struggle, but what else could she do? Shelby and Rachel made it in a few minutes as Shelby had promised and they walked through the doors of her studio.

Shelby rushed to Cassie and had her sit down so she could see her ankle. Cass had long ago taken off her stilettos and Shelby nearly gasped at how swollen her ankle was. "Baby, this looks pretty serious."

Cass shrugged. "It isn't that bad."

Carefully, softly, Shelby let her fingers trace lightly over Cassie's ankle. Cass clenched her jaw and let out a low growl.

"Not that bad, huh?" Shelby said condescendingly. "You just growled at me."

"You used to find that incredibly sexy."

"Different growls for different things, sweetheart."

At this point Rachel took out her headphones and sat next to Shelby. "You okay, Mama?" she wondered.

"Define okay, Rachie?" Cassie smiled softly. "I will be, once your mother calms down a bit."

"Cass," Shelby sighed with an eye roll. Did she always have to be the warrior, the hero? Couldn't she just let Shelby take care of her for once?! She voiced her concern. "Will you please, just this once, let me take care of you? I want to take care of you. But first I sincerely think we should take you to the hospital."

"Ugh. I knew you would say that." Cass sighed roughly. "But when you say take care of me..."

"Shh," Shelby laughed lightly. "We'll discuss that later, baby. Come on," with that she scooped Cassie up into her arms and carried her out to their car. Cass stiffened but soon relaxed into Shelby's embrace and wrapped her arms lovingly around her neck. True she had just been dropped (which was what had originally made her stiffen) but she trusted her Shelby with all her heart. She knew her Shelby wouldn't drop her. Not now, not ever. She would let her Shelby take care of her, this time.

. . .

After an excruciatingly long period of time at the hospital, they wrapped her ankle, told her she needed to stay off of it for approximately 6 weeks, and sent her home with painkillers. She held Shelby's hand in hers on the way home, softly rubbing her fingers against the back of Shelby's hand.

"Thank you," she whispered.

"For what, love?" Shelby smiled.

"Taking care of me. Making me to go the hospital even though I was being stubborn about it. Caring so much. Loving me."

Shelby looked over at Cassie with wide, sad eyes. "This is about a lot more than just your ankle, isn't it?" she concluded.

Cass nodded and Shelby pulled Cassie's hand up to her mouth, placing a soft kiss on it. "We will talk about this."

"Do we have to?"

"Don't you want to?"

"Can I just kiss you instead?"

Shelby laughed and sighed. It was so hard sometimes, to read Cassandra July. "I think we might be able to make that arrangement."

. . .

Rachel was in her bed and Shelby and Cassie were in theirs. It was rather late at night Shelby had Cassie very carefully straddled, so she wouldn't touch her ankle. Cassie, at this point, would not have minded if she did.

Their lips touched and Cass let out a soft moan. "I needed this." she let Shelby know. Shelby kissed her again, let her lips explore her, and rested them on her forehead.

"Glad I could be of assistance," she giggled lightly.

"You're my hero, Shelby," Cassie told her, let her know. "I hope you know that, because you are. You're the only person I've ever trusted who's never dropped me. Who's never let me down, or let me fall. You always catch me, and protect me and love me. You worry about whether or not I'm going to be alright." A tear fell from her eye and Shelby kissed it softly away, tasting the salt on her lips.

"Of course I do, Cassie," she whispered. "I love you."

And that was something that Cassie considered a miracle. It was what she was most grateful for in life, besides having Rachel as a daughter.

It made her feel so special, so important, so loved. The fact that she could have the roughest day in the world and feel better by coming home to Shelby's kisses, to Rachel's hugs, to her family.

Cassandra July finally had a family.

To protect her, to heal her.

To not let her fall.


	29. Afterglow

**keeperofwords: Small Rachel wakes up from a dream, goes to Shelby and Cassie's bed, catches them in afterglow and wonders where their pajama's are.**

**That was a great prompt! xD Thank you so much! If you have any more, please let me know!**

**With love always, Hayley**

* * *

**Afterglow**

Little six year old Rachel tossed and turned in her bed, having a nightmare. People were being mean to her Mommy, people were being mean to the whole family.

_you'll never make it,_

_why are you together?_

_One man was beating up Shelby, her Mommy. _

_Another was beating up Cassie, her Mama._

_Because they were different, and they didn't understand._

_Rachel was frightened_

. . .

Shelby and Cassie had been tossing and turning in bed, too-not having a nightmare. They breathed heavily against each other and Shelby fell off to her side, wrapping her arms around Cassie. "I love you," she whispered, kissing Cassie's cheek lightly, letting her lips linger. Cass let out a soft moan and turned to kiss her back.

"I love you too." she whispered, breathless.

Their skin touching was like fire-electricity. Sparks.

They fell asleep in that position. Skin against skin. Together. As one.

. . .

Rachel shivered in her sleep, her little heart pounding fast with fear.

_One man had her Mama's arms in his, pulling her away from Shelby, shoving her into a car. So they couldn't be together. Rachel loved her Mama-she didn't want her to leave!_ Rachel cried in her sleep and then screamed when she woke up.

Frantic and in the dark, she had to know her mommies were okay.

"Mommy! Mama!" she yelled out. When neither one opened her bedroom door she figured they were asleep and she didn't yell it loud enough. She got out of bed and felt the wall to lead herself down the hallway towards Shelby's room. Once she got there, she climbed up on the bed and on top of Shelby (who was a slightly heavy sleeper and didn't feel her on top of her).

"Mommy," Rachel shook her.

Shelby let out a disappointed groan upon being woken up. However she didn't hear the word "Mommy", she just knew she was being woken up. She knew she hadn't been asleep very long, either.

"Noooo, Cassieeee," she held onto her. "We really need to sleep now..."

"Mommy." Rachel said more firmly. That woke Cassie up. She nearly jumped at the noise, opening her eyes.

Shelby slowly fluttered hers open. "Oh, Rachel, sweetie, what's-Rachel!"

Cass pulled the blankets over top of her frantically, to cover herself up. But she was too late. Rachel had noticed her absence of clothing. She scrunched her nose.

"That's silly, Mama. Why aren't you wearing pajamas?"

"Well, um, uh, Mommy and I got hot, and um...sometimes when adults get hot at night they um...take their clothes off?"

Shelby covered her face with her hands, mortified but laughing at Cassie's explanation. She had tried, bless her heart, to make it not sound bad, but...well she failed.

Rachel still didn't understand. "Why didn't you just take the blanket off?" she wondered.

Shelby smacked Cassandra's arm. "Our little girl's smarter than us, Cass! Why didn't we think of that?"

"I don't know, maybe we were just too tired to think STRAIGHT." Cass glowered at Shelby teasingly and Shelby tried her very best not to laugh. STRAIGHT. There was nothing straight about what they had been doing.

"Maybe you're right."

"What are you doing awake, Rach?" Cass asked her. Rach was still on top of Shelby but turned her head to look over at Cass.

"I had a bad dream and had to make sure you were okay," Rachel answered.

"Oh. I'm so sorry baby girl," Shelby said softly. "You can sleep in bed with Mama and me, just go get Babs from your room and let us get dressed real quick, okay?"

"Okay," Rachel climbed off of Shelby and off of the bed. "But I still don't see why you couldn't have just taken off the blanket." Babs was Rachel's favorite stuffed panda.

The little six year old could be so condescending.

"We'll take that into consideration next time," Shelby said into her hands.

Rach left the room and Shelby made a quick scene of getting up to shut the door behind her. She put her hand over her heart. "Holy hell." she mumbled, fumbling in her dresser for something to wear. Hastily, she threw a t shirt and shorts on and threw some over to Cass, who was still on the bed.

Cass raised her eyebrows. "There's going to be a next time," she practically hummed.

"Always. Just next time Rachel won't see the after math of it. Or ANY of it. Ever."

"That was hilarious." Cass laughed, pulling the shirt over her head.

"That was horrible," Shelby blushed, getting back into bed and cuddling up against Cass. "Our afterglow was showing to our six year old daughter."

"She'll be scarred for life," Cass laughed. "At least we were just SLEEPING."

"Damn those nightmares," Shelby agreed with a laugh.

Rachel returned and crawled into bed with them.

Shelby had hurriedly changed the sheets before Rach got there.

Rach cuddled up against her mommies and scoffed. "It's not hot," she pointed out. "You two are silly."

"Silly indeed," Cassie agreed. "I don't know what we were thinking."

"Mmm. Neither do I." Shelby laughed.

They all drifted off to sleep and Rachel's dreams were nightmare-less for the rest of the night.

Cass and Shelby however, were not so fortunate. They were now paranoid of ever sleeping naked with Rachel anywhere near the house.


	30. Welcome to NYADA pt3

**Hello my lovelies. As always, August is my busiest summer month, and I've been dragged all over everywhere to do last minute school shopping and family outings and reunions and all that jazz. I've been working here and there on pieces that I haven't quite been able to finish yet and for that I apologize. These last couple of weeks should be more mellow (I START CHOIR AGAIN ON AUGUST 25 AND I'M SUPER EXCITED ABOUT IT! lol it's one of my college classes so it starts before school, and I just really miss it.) so yeah lots going on and I sincerely apologize for the gap between uploads. If it were up to me I'd write nonstop all day everyday.**

**I also have to apologize for the shortness of this update. I had sincerely wanted this chapter to be longer but after working on it for 2 weeks I was just totally blocked and this was as far as I got for this insert of Welcome to NYADA (pt.3). But if there's a certain part of their college experience you want to see, please let me know! Or just their past in general, pre-Rachel or whatever. xD**

**(I consider this progress, actually, since i've been working on a specific oneshot for this for a solid month and am unsure how I want to continue. That one is much longer though. As is the other one i'm struggling with).**

**I'll also admit, against my better judgement, that I'm working on another (I know I need to stop starting new stories but I just, I can't let these ideas go to waste, you know?) Shelby/Cassie pairing story in which Rachel is killed in a car crash and wrote all these letters to Shelby (sort of like a diary, i guess?) talking about her life and stuff because it's storyline in the fact that Shelby and Rachel never really reconnected or anything like they should of, and really only AU in the fact that she's with Cassie and Rachel was killed. Anyways, I'm titling it Letters to Shelby, and I've told myself i'm not going to post ANY of it until it's finished (which should solve the gap between uploads problem, and the problem of me never finishing shit. xD)**

**Special thank you to ALL of you my beautiful, wonderful readers!**

**I'll shut up now so you can read. xD**

**Oh, and i'm on another foreign to me computer so i'm super sorry if this formatting screws up. I'll be home tomorrow (as far as I know) and the format should go back to normal once i'm on my own computer again. Sweet jesus do I miss it.**

**With love always, Hayley.**

**(The day after the back to school party, when young Cassie and young Shelby are college roommates and developing a sort of secret thing for each other)**

* * *

**Welcome to NYADA Pt3**

Shelby groaned and rolled over to her side, waking up. Sitting on her bed, Cassie sifted through a choreography book and laughed at Shelby's hung over state.

"Morning, Sleeping Beauty." Cass immediately scolded herself inwardly for calling Shelby a beauty. Even though she had meant it, she wasn't sure why she had said it. She never said such personal things that she thought out loud.

"Hi," Shelby mumbled. She had noticed that Cass had called her Sleeping Beauty and hoped she meant it, then cursed herself for hoping that.

She swung her legs over the side of the bed, her head throbbing. She slowly pulled herself out of the bed and went into the bathroom. She ran a brush through her hair, brushed her teeth, and downed a couple of Tylenol, before walking back into the room and sitting back down on her bed. "My head hurts." she complained.

"First hangover?" Cassandra guessed.

"No," Shelby defended, scrunching her nose.

Crossing her arms over her chest, Cass raised a disbelieving eyebrow. Shelby gave her a look and sighed. "Maybe."

"You're still a horrible liar." Cass laughed.  
"Oh shut up." Shelby rolled her eyes. Why did she have to be paired with the most annoying dance major possible?

Cassie shrugged and continued reading her book. "I do what I want."  
Shelby gave her a glare and found something to wear, walking to the bathroom to put it on. Cassie caught her before she opened the door.

"You know," she started talking before she thought about it again. It was one thing Cassandra July hated about herself. "You've seen me get dressed. I think it'd only be fair if I saw you change too."

Shelby bit the inside of her cheek, coyly. This girl was good. But not good enough. She turned around and eyed the blonde, carefully. "I was drunk last night."

"You saw everything, don't pretend you didn't," Cass smirked, not even bothering to look up from her book.

"Nice try, July." Shelby smirked back, pulling the bathroom door shut behind her.

"I wasn't trying," Cassandra muttered, slightly disappointed. She let her head fall down onto her book. She knew she shouldn't be disappointed that Shelby wouldn't change in front of her. All of this was not okay.

They were roommates. They technically weren't even friends. And she couldn't ruin Shelby's life with a relationship with her. She wouldn't.

Shelby walked out of the bathroom wearing something that looked wayyyy too professional for a day of study. Cass raised an eyebrow at her again. "Thought you were going to spend the day studying and nursing that hangover?" she wondered.

Shelby glowered and let out a half growl. "You know this hangover is all your fault. And I AM spending my day studying. Why does it matter to you?!"

"I don't know. It doesn't." Cass answered too quickly. Shelby looked up at her, and for a minute there was this awkward silence that they had no idea what to do with. Cassandra coughed, gathered up her text books and her lap top, and put them into her over the shoulder bag. She grabbed her duffel and pulled her hair back into a bun. "I'm uh-Gonna go to the studio and work."

"Alright. I don't control you." Shelby shrugged. "You don't have to tell me where you go."

"Hell right I don't." Cass scoffed. "Have fun with the hangover." and she uncomfortably shut the door, practically jogging to the studio. She needed to get her head out of the clouds. She needed to refocus herself. She threw herself into her work.

. . .

Cass knocked back another shot of tequila and stretched her legs out in front of her, working on her flexibility. She would not like Shelby.

She DID NOT like Shelby.

And she WOULD NOT let herself.

So as she finished her tequila she promised herself she just wouldn't think about her. Not about her dazzling green emerald city eyes. Not about her long, flowy brunette hair. Not about her adorable morning face, (even if it was just slightly puffy) and certainly not about—

_DAMN IT, CASSANDRA, STOP THAT_. Cass scolded herself. She finished stretching before she stood up, grabbed on of the tennis rackets she had brought with her, and started attacking tennis balls with it, hitting them over the net with an intense focus. She had decided to go to the court instead of the studio. She couldn't hit things, in the studio.

After about ten minutes of focusing and beating the hell out of the tennis balls she was serving, she heard a voice behind her.

"This isn't the studio," the deep, studious, seductive voice said to her, condescendingly.

Cass spun around, startled. "Oh, Shelby." she said, admittedly very caught off guard. She hadn't expected to be followed. "What are you doing here?"'

"I was going to come and serve a few times to get a break from studying," Shelby held up a tennis racket. Apparently she and Cassie were more alike than they had thought. "But I can go and give you some space, if you want."

Cass wanted so badly for Shelby to stay but she knew she couldn't let that happen. It was in everybody's best interest that they just stayed away from each other as much as possible. It was just simply for the best. However, the wrong words spilled out of her mouth when she said, "No, you can stay, if you want." a little too hurriedly. She wanted to pitch herself off of the empire state building.

Shelby smiled softly and got out some tennis balls for her to hit. Cass went to step out of the way before Shelby suggested, "We can play 1 on 1?"

With a shrug, Cass whispered, "Sure."

So they did, and as they did, they talked. Cass couldn't keep her eyes off of Shelby and Shelby couldn't keep her thoughts off of Cass.

"What happened to that hangover?" Cass smirked, teasingly, after a while. She nearly tripped trying to hit the ball after Shelby served it. She was admittedly very good, (both women were, as well as super competitive).

"Still there," Shelby winced, practically diving for the ball after Cass hit it back. "Being ignored."

"You're one tough bitch, Corcoran." Cass said with a small smile.

Shelby laughed lightly. "Am I supposed to take that as a compliment?" she wondered.

Shrugging, Cass said, "I would, if I were you."

Shelby's eyes sparkled with curiosity. Cassandra was so hard to figure out. "Okay." she couldn't help but smile, lightly. She knew she was starting to crush on Cassie and that terrified her when she had time to think about it. But when she actually talked to Cassie, all of the fear, all of the doubt, went away. Like nothing else mattered.


	31. Separation Anxiety

**Okay here you have it my lovelies. I busted my ass today to get this super fucking long chapter out for all of you! xD I just felt so bad that I've been so busy this summer and I really was just in the mood to finish this chapter already (I've been working on it for the better half of three weeks).**

**-Guest: I have a prompt! maybe you could write about the time when Cass and Shelby separated for a while, and how the separation affected both Shelby and Rachel. (and Cassie)-**

**Thank you so much for this prompt! Warning: Cassandra and Shelby both have breakdowns-mentions of beatings and alcoholism, as well as lots of self-hate and rants. This dips into their back stories a lot.**

**Also, before you read, I understand it's a little theatrical and very extreme, but there are more factors than just Shelby and Cassie's fight at play. Also, we're talking about "Crazy July". She can't be fixed all the time, and Shelby can't be perfect all the time.**

**Eventually, the pressure of it all just makes them...crack.**

**Also, I've changed the rating of this to M, because of my language usage and some other adult themes. Just to be safe.**

**I love you all and I hope you like this super super long installment to Singer Dancer Little Star! Oh also I apologize for how much of this you have to read in italics, I couldn't think of any other way to differentiate. You'll see what I mean.**

**With love always, Hayley**

* * *

**Separation Anxiety**

_The glass vase shattered into what seemed like a billion pieces, as did the hearts of the two women arguing. Once the vase was thrown, everything went downhill. Though, unfortunately enough for everyone involved, things had already been headed in that direction._

_"You are supposed to be SOBER!" Shelby over exaggerated the word. No use of language could describe how she felt. So hurt, betrayed, let down, destroyed._

_"I had ONE FUCKING SIP, Shelby!" Cass defended. "I was tasting it! It barely touched my tongue, for god's sake, I'm not drunk!"_

_"Being drunk is not the point!" Shelby insisted, tears forming in her eyes. How could Cassie have believed that even a sip would be okay?! She knew better-that even a sip no longer made her technically "sober". That after that one little sip it was already back to square one._

_"Shelby-" Cassie was at a loss for words. Why was her girlfriend making such a big deal out of this?! She hadn't done it to get drunk! She had just wanted a taste. Only a taste!_

_But before their argument could continue, a little Rachel slowly walked out of her room. The little five year old looked frightened-she had never seen her mommies fight, or heard them yell at each other before. Her eyes were wide with tears. "Mama, Mommy? What's going on?" she asked, her bottom lip quivering. She saw the look of hurt and betrayal in her mommy's eyes-the look of confusion and pain and anger in her mama's._

_They didn't want to drag Rachel into this._

_Shelby cast a guilty look at the glass vase she had thrown. Cassie had bought her the vase full of roses spontaneously 3 days before. She had thought Cassie so romantic for it. And now..._

_Now..._

_"Careful, Rachel," Shelby warned; her voice broke as she did so. "Don't step on the glass. Go to your room, baby, I'll be there in a moment." Shelby's voice was shaking, as were her hands. She looked up into Cassie's apologetic eyes and a tear slid down her cheek._

_"Will Mama?" Rachel wondered, her wide eyes full of liquid curiosity and fear._

_Shelby didn't answer-didn't know how to._

_"Please, Rachel." Cass said for her. Slowly, the little girl retreated back into her bedroom. Cassie reached out for Shelby and Shelby harshly pulled away, crossing her arms. _

_"How can I ever trust you again?!" She asked._

_Cassandra's heart dropped low in her chest. "Shelby-"_

_"My father-" Shelby whispered._

_"I know," Cassie stopped her; put a hand lightly on her arm and caressed her. "I'm not him. I swear. I'm so sorry, baby. Shelby, please, it will NEVER happen again." she scolded herself inwardly for not knowing this would really be about Shelby's father-not how much Cassandra had swallowed, but the fact that it was done at all after the oath of sobriety she had taken._

_Shelby swallowed, not thinking, just feeling. "That's what you said last time."_

_Her words stung like a dagger going through Cassie's chest. The blonde's throat went dry, she had tears streaming down her face, dampening her cheeks in an attempt to blink them away. The last time...the last time was different._

_Cass scoffed at even herself. She knew she was pathetic. But she was willing to try harder. 110%. For Shelby. For Rachel. _

_Because she was finally starting to understand the deep deep layers that her drinking held. It was so much more than the physical action of it. So much more._

_"I promise, Shelby. Shelby, please look at me, believe me, trust me, I promise. Please."_

_Shelby turned to face her, stared deeply into her eyes._

_"Please." Cass repeated. She had never meant anything in her life more. "I love you. So much. It was only a sip-it won't happen again."_

_With a blink, Shelby said thickly, "I love you too, but..."_

_"But?" Cass's voice cracked and broke Shelby with it. But she knew she had to do it. Shelby Corcoran didn't give second chances. She didn't believe in them. And with a heavy heart, Cassandra knew what Shelby was about to do. Because Cass didn't believe in them either. Because second chances led to heartbreak. More heartbreak. Second chances didn't exist. Both of them knew that._

_"But one sip is all it takes. I can't do it, Cassandra. I'm-" a sob broke through her chest and she put a hand over her mouth and turned back around. Cass dropped her hold and Shelby continued. "I'm so sorry."_

_The barrier that was keeping Cassandra from completely losing it busted down. She was destroyed. Lost. Gone. What would she do, without her Shelby? She didn't know a life without her Shelby anymore. And oh, god, what about Rachel?! Her sweet, sweet and innocent little Rachel._

_She didn't deserve what was about to happen._

_Cass wanted to stab herself for this mistake. Everything was her fault._

_In truth, it made her want to drink more. SO much more. Her throat burned with the need for it-her head spun. But this time was different-this time she recognized all the hurt-the pain-that it caused those around her. This time, she knew she'd be able to control herself and stay away from it._

_"Shelby, please," she begged. "I'll be better. I'll do better. I'm sorry, I-"_

_"Get your things," Shelby whispered. "And go say goodbye to Rachel."_

_"Say-say goodbye?" Cassandra panicked. Sure, Rachel wasn't hers by blood, but...surely Shelby wouldn't take her away completely-would she? Cassandra July was not intimidated by much. She rarely cried. She didn't orders from people. But from Shelby..._

_Shelby was, and always had been, one of Cassandra July's ONLY weaknesses._

_"For tonight."_

_"Just tonight?"_

_"I don't know."_

_"Shelby?"_

_Shelby spun around and saw the love of her life-she, who, even if only slightly, went back on her word. "Just-go."_

. . .

Cassandra was sitting up in the bed she shared with Shelby. Thinking, remembering. Shelby was lying against her, her arms wrapped tightly around her, fast asleep. She stroked Shelby's hair, softly, so she wouldn't wake her. She couldn't believe that three years earlier, they had separated, even if only for a short while-three weeks max.

It was the longest short while of both of their lives, as well as Rachel's.

And now there they were, 3 years later, a week away from their wedding day.

Shelby shifted in her sleep and Cassie let go to let her adjust. Sleepily, Shelby lifted her head to protest. "Keep your hands on me," she whispered, nuzzling into Cassie.

. . .

_"Get your hands off of me." Shelby shoved Cassie back after the woman had tried her best to make Shelby see reason._

_"Say goodbye to your daughter or don't, but get out of my house." Shelby was hard; cold. It was the only way she knew she could get through this. Because this needed to be done, no matter how much it hurt all of them. If Cassie stayed it would just hurt more. She had to be forced away and it needed to happen, tonight. Shelby took a long, deep breath, to calm herself, and stood firm._

_"Shelby-" Cass wiped a tear from her own cheek with her sleeve._

_"Cassandra, please." Shelby said forcefully. "It just hurts." her body language was hard, but her voice was full of emotion, her eyes swimming with the tears she was clenching back._

_Cassandra had to agree with that statement, at the very least. It did just hurt. She slowly made her way to Rachel's bedroom and stood sadly in the doorway. Besides tonight, when was the next time she was going to get to see her little star?_

_Little Rachel sat up in bed, her lower lip stuck out. "Mama?" she wondered. "Why are you so sad?"_

_Cassie sniffed and sat down on Rachel's bed. Rach climbed up into her mama's lap, and Cass rocked her slowly back and forth, trying to soothe both Rachel and herself. She took deep breaths. How do you tell your daughter that you have to leave and aren't sure when or if you'll be coming back?_

_"Rachel, sweetheart," a tear slipped down her cheek and Rachel's eyes widened. She had never seen her Mama cry._

_"Don't cry, Mama," she said._

_Taking a moment to compose herself, Cass closed her eyes and then reopened them. "Rachel," she started again, rocking her some more. "My sweet, sweet Rachel. I have to go away tonight."_

_"What do you mean go away?" Rachel's voice was so innocent and confused that it made Cassandra's tears fall faster, splashing onto Rachel's shoulder. _

_"I have to go back to my house tonight, and I don't know when I can come back."_

_"What? But why?" _

_"Mommy and I-" what were they? Separated? Arguing? "Mommy thinks we need some time away from each other." she didn't know why she was trying to explain this to their five year old. Even though Rachel was very advanced for her age, she wasn't going to understand what was happening. Hell, Cassandra could barely understand it._

_"But you love each other!" Rachel said._

_"I know," Cassandra whispered. "I know, sweetheart but I have to go home tonight."_

_Rachel clung tight to Cassandra, her little arms wrapping around her Mama's neck. "No!" She cried. "I don't want you to go! This is home! Don't leave me! Stay here with me! You don't have to sleep with Mommy tonight, sleep with me instead! We can both fit on my bed!"_

_"Rachel, baby, please." Cass's tears couldn't even be felt anymore. She just knew of their existence because they were dampening her hands as she tried to wipe them away. "I don't want to leave you. But I'll see you soon, okay? I won't stay away from you, I promise."_

_Shelby stood in the doorway, hating herself for what she was doing. For what she was doing to Rachel, for what was happening between her and Cassie, for all of it. It was the hardest thing she had ever done-hardest decision she had ever made-and she knew she would likely regret it. She already was._

_But if Cass couldn't control her urge to taste the alcohol...she would regret a life where she let that happen as well. They all would._

_It was better to feel the pain now, wasn't it? Than to drag the process out throughout the course of years?_

_Because she couldn't be stuck in a relationship like that again._

_She had only just escaped it._

_She closed her eyes, tightly, and sucked in a deep breath, walking back towards the living room. Moments later, Cass emerged from Rachel's bedroom, trying to catch her breath-it was restricted in her chest. She went to Shelby's room, collected some of her things that were lying around. _

_Rachel ran out of her bedroom and after Cassie the moment her Mama had left it. She followed Cass into Shelby's room, and was holding on to her as she forced herself out of it and towards the front door. Rachel jumped up on Cassie and held her tightly._

_"Mama, don't go!" she cried. "I want you to stay!"_

_"I want to stay, Rach," she tried to let her know. "I love you so much."_

_"Then STAYY!" Rachel nearly screamed. "Why not stay, Mama?"_

_"Mommy doesn't want me to," Cass said softly._

_Shelby looked at her, broken-hearted. Of course she wanted her to stay. But she couldn't let it happen._

_"WHY NOT, MOMMY?!" Rachel screamed, directing anger towards Shelby. _

_"Rachel, lower your voice, please," Shelby tried her best to stay calm. "Mama and I are taking a break."_

_"You fighting?" _

_"Yes, Rachel,"_

_"DON'T!" Rachel yelled louder, her grasp tightening on Cass. "NO FIGHTING."_

_"We don't want to, Rachel," Cass whispered. "I have to go. I'm so so sorry." she kissed the top of Rachel's head. "I love you so much, my little star. I'll see you soon, okay? I promise." _

_Shelby picked Rachel up into her arms, struggling to hold on to her so Cass could get out the door. The longer this dragged out the more it hurt._

_Cassandra looked Shelby dead in the eyes as she backed out the door and watched their little Rachel struggle to get out of Shelby's arms._

_"I hope you're happy now, Shelby." she said darkly. "I hope this makes your life easier to deal with."_

_She slammed the door behind her, leaving Shelby to take care of Rachel and the broken vase._

_She didn't feel bad for leaving Shelby to deal with all of that. It was Shelby's choice for her to leave, not her own._

_She walked, slowly, back to her apartment. She felt broken. She felt lost._

_Shelby finally let her tears fall once Cassandra had shut the door. They poured down her face and she began hyperventilating. Rachel yelled at her, angrily, screaming. She could hardly hear her-all she could focus on was the fact that she had just kicked the love of her life out of her house. She could barely breathe._

. . .

Shelby shifted in her sleep again. She lifted her head slowly and looked up at Cassandra. Cass double blinked, refocusing her eyes and coming back into reality. She tilted her head down and Shelby caught on, lifting hers up a little bit more so that their lips could brush against each other lightly, quickly.

"What was that for?" Shelby wondered.

"Because I love you," Cassandra said softly.

"I love you too," Shelby looked over at the alarm clock. "What are you doing up so late?" she wondered.

"I couldn't sleep," Cass admitted. She adjusted her body under Shelby and Shelby moved off of her for a second. Cass slid down into a laying position on her back, as opposed to the position she was just in, sitting up. As soon as she was adjusted, she pulled Shelby back on top off her. "Stay close to me." she begged.

"What's wrong with you tonight?" Shelby wondered, her tone full of pure concern. "I can sense it, Cassie, something's off with you."

"Why? Because I'm clingy?"

"No, you're always clingy." Shelby said, condescendingly. "But it's something more-"

"I was thinking," Cass started.

"Are you getting cold feet about the wedding?" Shelby feared, her heart beat getting faster.

"No, no, of course not. My feet are toasty warm, I promise," she wrapped her legs around Shelby.

"Mmmhmm. Metaphorically, of course." Shelby informed her.

"Are my feet cold?" Cass teased.

"Freezing."

"Hmm. Cold feet warm heart?"

"A for the effort." Shelby giggled lightly.

"Well, it is late at night," Cass defended.

"Ah. All the more reason to sleep." Shelby suggested.

"Ehh. Why, are _you_ getting cold feet about our wedding?" She couldn't help but ask-Shelby was the one to bring it up, anyways.

"No, of course not. What were you thinking about, Cassie?" Shelby asked, lifting her head to place soft kisses on Cassandra's bare shoulders, her collar bone, her chest where her tank top had made a V, her neck, her chin, her cheek.

"Us," Cass was being distant and Shelby could feel her being slightly tense. She placed another lingering, warm kiss on Cass's collar bone, with parted lips. Cass arched her back, slightly, at the contact and Shelby mumbled against her skin,

"What about us?"

"The time when we were separated." Cass admitted softly.

Pulling her head up slowly, softly, Shelby whispered, "Why, sweetheart?"

"It killed me," Cass stated the completely obvious.

"It killed me, too, so why dwell on the past?" Shelby wrapped herself tighter around Cassie. "Think happy thoughts. Raindrops on roses," she kissed the spot right under Cassie's eye. "Whiskers on kittens," she kissed both cheeks. "And all that jazz."

A deep chuckle rumbled from in Cassie's chest and it tickled Shelby from on top of her. Shelby smiled softly and kissed Cassie's soft lips once more.

"It's just...Can you believe it was only three years ago, Shelbs? And now...in a week, we're getting married? It just seems so...surreal."

"Thoughts of a fight that happened three years ago, are keeping you up at night? Cassie, we resolved that argument three weeks after it happened. Tell me what's really wrong."

That was a question that Cassandra did not want to answer. She distracted Shelby and deflected the question by pulling Shelby's body up, pressing her lips to Shelby's earlobe before taking it in her mouth, teasingly, making Shelby attempt to suppress a moan. The moan went unsuppressed.

Cass caressed Shelby's curves and let her mouth explore her warm, almost overly eager body.

After a few moments of Shelby reciprocating the feelings, she whispered, out of breath, "That was an incredible delay, Cassie," She moved her fingers and placed a piece of Cassandra's hair behind her ear, kissing the spot where she had moved it from. "Now tell me, my love, what's been bothering you."

. . .

_Cass was numb. She made it home, and she was numb. She stumbled through the door, threw her keys angrily at the couch, slammed the door behind her, and dropped her things by the door, stripping and heading to the bathroom, needing the hot water to calm her-needing it to relax her tensed muscles._

_She was so worked up it was likely she could've drowned but she wasn't really concerned with self-safety at the moment. She slammed on the hot water and climbed in to the shower. It was a glass-case shower, and it fogged up almost immediately. It still didn't feel hot enough. She knew she needed to feel the pain. Like the pain she caused Shelby. Like the pain she was causing Rachel. She didn't feel like she was suffering enough to make up for what she did. She made the water hotter._

_Steam rolled up and hit the ceiling, bouncing back down to her and nearly suffocating her. She barely felt it. She slid down the wall and let out an agonizing scream. One of pure torture._

_The fight was more than just a fight between her and Shelby. She knew she was ruining everything. It brought her back to a time when she was younger. A time when she lived with her parents and was smacked across the room because she hadn't tried hard enough. Because "if you aren't suffering, Cassandra, you don't want it enough". That was what she was taught and that was all she knew._

_She stayed in the bottom of the shower until the water grew cold, then slammed it off. Her throat was on fire. Her head was spinning. She knew she was already a fuck up, so why not? Shelby wasn't going to take her back now anyways. The damage had already been done and anymore done would change absolutely nothing._

_She hurriedly got dressed and ran down the hallway, pounding on her neighbor's door._

_Her neighbor answered, a little dazed._

_"Do you have a bottle of whiskey I could have?" Cass realized she was panting. She didn't care. "Medical emergency." she lied. "I'll pay you back." that was the truth._

_The neighbor widened his eyes. "Medical emergency? Do you need me to call a hospital?"_

_"No, no I have it taken care of, just...the whiskey?"_

_Nodding, slowly, the neighbor (his name was Jared) rushed to his kitchen and grabbed her a bottle of whiskey. He was worried about her but wasn't going to waste time asking more questions-especially if there was a medical emergency._

_"Thank you," she speed walked back to her apartment and shut the door, uncapping the whiskey and pouring practically half of it; pouring it down her throat. She nearly screamed at its intense strength but it tasted so SO good. With a shaky hand, she put the bottle back up to her lips for more, then double blinked and REALLY looked at the bottle-hard._

_What the hell was she doing?!_

_This THIS was why Shelby was mad to begin with! THIS alcohol was to blame for their fighting-the alcohol and Cassandra's weakness for it. Angry and realizing what she had done, she smashed the bottle (still half full) against the side of her fridge, still grasping the neck of the bottle tightly. Glass and whiskey shot out in all directions-some of it embedding in Cassandra's skin, some of it smashing against the floor. She barely felt that, either. _

_What was this horrible HORRIBLE substance doing to her? She could hardly breathe. She hated herself for what she had done. All drinking more whiskey had done was satisfy her for a moment and then what? It made things worse._

_Her hand grasped tightly to the broken off shard of bottle that remained in her hold. It dug into her and she let out a growl._

_Jared, after hearing the shatter, was extremely concerned for Cassandra's well-being, and rushed over to her apartment as soon as he could. He opened the door without knocking and found her, in a small puddle of blood and whiskey, on her kitchen floor._

_"Oh my god," he put his hand to his mouth and dialed 911._

. . .

"I...Oh, Shelby..." Cass held her lover even tighter (which shouldn't have been physically possible) and Shelby understood at once.

"You're having one of "those" nights, aren't you?" her voice was full of sorrow. Cass didn't have the energy to nod-she was so damn tired but she couldn't sleep. Not on one of these nights.

"Shelby what if I relapse again? Back into my old alcoholic ways, what if-"

"Shh, shh, my Cassie..." Shelby kissed her softly. "That isn't going to happen."

"How do you know that for sure?!" Cass begged to know.

"I trust you," Shelby whispered. "You need to have more faith in yourself, Cassie. You're not going to relapse. You're sober. You're healthy. You are loved, and you are here, and you are fine. You have Rachel and you have me and in a week we'll be getting married. And then you'll have me forever. In sickness and in health. For better or for worse. Until death do us part." she placed her lips to Cassie's cheek and Cassie held her there, a tear sliding down her cheek.

"I love you so much, Shelby."

"I love you so much, too, Cassandra."

Cassandra. Shelby loved the way her name tasted on her lips, and Cassie adored the way it sounded. And it was a nice distraction for both of them, for a minute. But Cass had mentioned the fight, and now Shelby couldn't help but think back to it.

. . .

_When Cassandra left, Shelby held Rachel and just cried. And cried and cried and cried until she had no more tears to possibly shed. Rachel was still very VERY mad at her for kicking Cassandra out, but the little girl sought comfort in her Mommy as well._

_Shelby was beating herself up on the inside. Cassandra had warned Shelby-numerous times-going into this relationship that things would not always be...good. That she was "Crazy July" for a reason (technically the Crazy July incident didn't happen until later on in their college experience but Cass would be damned if she didn't constantly remind Shelby of it every argument past then). That she was a recovering alcoholic and that she was still struggling. That she wasn't as strong as the front she had been putting up._

_For some reason, Shelby had been blind to all of that. Because the Cassandra she saw-the one she knew, the one she loved-was different from the one Cass saw, right?_

_Shelby saw strength-such strength, and courage, and hope. She saw daring and sexy and brilliant and put-together Cassandra July. She saw what she wanted to see. What Cassandra had wanted everyone to see._

_But Shelby didn't think that was so bad, because she also saw the parts of Cassandra no one else ever got to see. The soft side of her; the one that liked to be cuddled and kissed and caressed, and the one who adored her little daughter Rachel. The fun one; the one who would dance around a room with a grin on her face for no reason, who would propose that everyone drop what they're doing so they could go to the beach. And every other side of Cassandra that wasn't "Hard Ass" July._

_Shelby knew the worst part of it all was that she had seen Cassandra's weakness for the alcohol. She KNEW Cassandra's story._

_But she was too blissed out-to naive to think that Cassandra would ever act on it again, even if only a little bit._

_Shelby let out a growl and a long sigh._

_After all these years, and they were back at square one now._

_With everything, not just the drinking._

_With their relationship-Shelby scoffed at herself. What relationship? Everything they had was over now. All of it._

_All of the late night talks and kisses._

_All of the adventures with Rachel._

_All of the love they shared between each other._

_It was slowly fizzling out with every realized flaw that they had._

_Shelby shook her head, after getting a very tired Rachel back into bed and climbing into bed herself. The flaws were what had made them work, weren't they? One of the reasons she and Cass had worked so well together was because they balanced each other out. What would their relationship have, if it were so very perfect?_

_It would have absolutely nothing, Shelby answered her own question, because any perfect relationship is so extremely imperfect that it's nonexistent. _

_All she wanted now was to hold Cass and whisper sweet nothings in her ear and kiss at her neck and beg for forgiveness; to tell her that she was well forgiven. But Shelby knew that deep down she hadn't yet forgiven Cass and she really wasn't sure that she was going to-that she could._

_After all they'd been through. Cass knew everything about Shelby-all of the intimate parts, where Shelby had let no one else in._

_All of these details included those about Shelby's father._

_And how could Cassandra be so...so selfish?! After all she knew about Shelby's past?!_

_"UGH." Shelby was frustrated, she was overly tired, and she was over thinking everything-over analyzing was a special skill of Shelby Corcoran's. She didn't REALLY want to hold Cassandra-that was just habit, right? She was pissed at Cassandra. She didn't want anything to do with Cassandra. She was just used to wanting it._

_The first few nights-maybe even weeks-were going to be difficult. Shelby knew that for her sake-for Rachel's sake-she couldn't give in._

_. . ._

_After the hospital found out how Cass had cut herself and gotten the glass all over her, they called the police, who then ordered she go to a six week stint of rehab, 3 days a week. _

_Cassandra was familiar with the rehab process, seeing as she had sought out help when Shelby was pregnant with Rachel._

_Unhappily so, she dragged herself to rehab the required 3 times a week. She didn't speak, she didn't participate, she just listened; tried to form her own sort of mantra to chant to herself so she wouldn't touch another bottle of alcohol again._

_But that realization that had hit her on that dreadful night-the one about how badly it hurt Shelby-the pain in Shelby's eyes, in Rachel's screams-all of that was enough to make her never even want to think about alcohol. _

_None of that mattered anyways, Cassandra knew, because Shelby wasn't going to take her back._

_She had yet to even contact Cass-Cass hadn't seen Rachel since the night she left. She imagined it was because Shelby was afraid that if she and Cass met face to face-especially with Rachel there-Cass would try something to win Shelby back. Cass didn't blame her because, knowing herself, she was likely to do just that. What Cass was painfully unaware of was the fact that Shelby wasn't really concerned about Cass trying to win them back, she was really just concerned that she was going to give in and say yes._

_But god, did Cassandra miss her Singer and her Little Star. She missed Shelby's voice-how it would calm and soothe her and excite her all at once. She missed Rachel's little laugh and her declarations of "You're silly, Mama!" She missed being called Mama. She missed everything about them. Both of them. This pain was almost unbearable._

_She knew that without Rachel and Shelby, she didn't have a life. Besides a few friends from the dance studio and some old college friends, she had no one else. Her parents were another story._

_Besides working at NYADA, she had nothing going for her. She was Crazy July- no one would work with her._

_God how she missed her family unit._

_How she wanted her life back._

_How she regretted every second of that one sip she took-every moment since then that she'd broken the hearts of the two people she loved most in the world._

_After three weeks of not participating in rehab, another three weeks was tacked on, claiming if she didn't participate, the sentence would be more severe._

_She wasn't sure how the state or the law or whatever had the right to do that to her but she didn't complain. It wasn't as if she had anything else to do._

_. . ._

_They were eating dinner when Rachel, who had been so silent since the night Cassandra left, lifted up her head and looked at her Mommy, clearly confused. "Mommy?" she spoke up._

_Shelby raised her head from looking down at her meal, surprised. It was one of the first times Rachel had actually initiated conversation in quite some time._

_"When is Mama coming home?" their little star wondered._

_It dawned on Shelby that it wasn't fair, what she was doing to Rachel. She was so young, and she didn't understand what had been going on, she had just had to live with it. She was so strong-a trait Shelby knew, grudgingly, that she got from both parents. Shelby acknowledged that it was alright to punish herself-for not listening to Cass to begin with when she insisted any relationship between them would be a bad idea, for not going with her gut, for ever trusting anybody ever again. But it wasn't fair to punish Rachel._

_With a long, deep breath, Shelby whispered, "Sweetheart, Mama isn't coming home."_

_Rachel's eyes widened to large saucers. "Ever?! Why are you still fighting? Why haven't you kissed yet?!" Shelby assumed Rachel was referring to her and Cassandra's usual "kiss and make up" policy. It was something they usually did when they were having a small disagreement._

_Unfortunately for everyone involved, this was much more than some small disagreement._

_"I'm so sorry, Rachel," was all Shelby could think to say._

_"I want to go see Mama!" Rachel practically demanded, setting her fork down._

_"Rachel, I-"_

_"Please?! I miss her!"_

_Shelby had some serious reservations about letting Rachel go and stay with Cassie, even if only for a night or so. One of them being she wasn't sure of Cassandra's sober standings anymore. Another one being she selfishly didn't want Rachel wanting Cassandra more than she wanted herself. Yet another being that Shelby wasn't sure she wanted to start contacting Cassandra again-she wasn't sure either one of them could do so without falling back into old habits._

_"I miss her too, baby." Shelby said softly._

_It had been difficult, functioning without Cassandra in the house. Not to mention lonely. There was no one to be unpredictable and dance-y and loud. They missed their Dancer. Rachel missed both of her mommies tucking her in at night. She missed all of them singing and dancing together. She missed them eating dinner, and watching Funny Girl and she missed her Mama being silly._

_Shelby dreaded going to bed at night, knowing there was nothing to look forward to-no warm body to hold and kiss; nothing but a cold, empty spot next to her, and nightmares. Oh, the nightmares._

_They seemed endless and most nights Shelby wasn't sure if it was even worth it to bother trying to sleep at all. Nightmares that Cassie was hurt, or lost, or broken. Nightmares of her being dragged away (even though they were already separated and apart). Nightmares of storms and no Cassie for comfort. Nightmares of continuing to live her life, Cassie-less. She wasn't sure if she could handle it._

_It had already been 3 weeks and it was the longest 3 weeks of her and Rachel's lives._

_"I'll text her after dinner, okay, Rach?" Shelby vowed. She wasn't sure she wanted to, but she also wasn't sure she'd have a choice._

_The little five year old nearly choked trying to hurriedly finish her dinner. Because she knew the sooner dinner was over, the sooner they contacted her Mama._

_Tentatively, after dinner was over and dishes were done and the kitchen was clean and Shelby couldn't think of any other way to put off doing so, she took out her phone and hit Cassie's name in the contact list._

_She wrote simple words. Not giving away emotion, not giving away any clues that might suggest something was less than perfect in the Corcoran household. Once Cassandra spotted a fault she would try to work her way back in. Even though that was something Shelby desperately wanted, she knew she wasn't supposed to want it. That for the sake of her own heart not breaking again, or Rachel's, she couldn't want it._

**_Rachel wants to see you_**_. She hit send and waited._

_Cass was just getting out of another rehab session (where they had, unluckily for her, discussed how alcoholism affects those around you as well as yourself) when she unlocked her phone and saw the __**"1 new message from Shelby"**__ bar flash across her screen._

_For a minute she just stared at the phone, unsure how to approach this. Did she ignore her, or did she read it? She knew it would hurt to read it._

_But screw it, she decided. She was already hurting._

**_Rachel wants to see you_**_._

_She does? Oh thank god. I've missed her so much... Cassandra wasn't sure what to respond to Shelby but in her head she was absolutely jubilant. At least her little star still loved her as much as she loved her Rachel._

**_I want to see her too_**_. She decided was going to be her answer. Her heart leapt and for the first time in the past 2 weeks, she had something to look forward to. She had a reason, besides work and rehab, to want to get out of bed. She was going to get to see her little girl._

_Unless, she realized, unless Shelby was just stating a fact and wasn't going to let it happen._

_But Cass had legal rights to Rachel. She and Shelby weren't married or anything but Cass had legally adopted her. If worse came to worse they would end up with a custody battle._

_But did she really want to put Rachel through all of that?_

_Shelby hadn't waited long to get a response._

**_I want to see her too_**_._

_Shelby was not about to even dare to admit how badly she was missing Cassandra as well. She was not going to give in._

**_Are you free tonight? Can she come stay with you for the night?_**

_Cass sighed heavily, thankful it was a Friday._

**_Yes, I'm free and that sounds amazing. I can't wait to see her._**

_If Shelby wasn't going to admit she missed Cass then Cass was sure as hell not going to admit she also missed Shelby. Both women could be so damn stubborn._

**_I'll drop her off in an hour or so._**

**_Perfect. I'll see you then._**

_Both hated how cold they were being to one another._

_But knew that being lovey would only make matters worse._

_An hour. Cass made it back to her apartment and paced it, cleaning up every inch of anything she could find. Only an hour._

_It was a really long hour to wait._

_. . ._

_Shelby had to mentally prepare herself for what she knew was bound to happen when she saw Cassandra. Her heart would melt, she'd change her mind, and she'd want her back. Because Cassandra July had that effect on her. Because Cassandra was the only person who could ever affect her the way that she did._

_She walked a very excited Rachel out to the parking garage and got her in the car. They drove to SoHo and by the time they were standing outside of Cassandra's apartment, Shelby's heart was racing so fast she was concerned that she might get sick._

_You are an actress, Shelby Corcoran. She told herself firmly. Keep your shit together. Don't let her see how badly you're hurting._

_Conceal it, don't feel it. Don't let it show. _

_She cursed Rachel for all the times the little girl had made her watch Frozen._

_Cass swung the door open with a huge grin on her face. Shelby couldn't tell if it was real or forced. Rachel jumped up into her arms immediately, "Mama, Mama!" she said, excitedly. "I missed you!"_

_"I missed you too, Rachie!" Cass exclaimed, peppering her little face with kisses. God she had missed her little face. "Why don't you go inside, okay? I have cookies for you on the table and then we can watch whatever movie you want."_

_"For really?!" Rachel squealed. She kept looking at her Mama, unsure when she would see her again._

_"For really." Cassie laughed, setting Rachel down so she could go inside. "I want to talk to Mommy for a minute."_

_Oh dear god, Shelby thought to herself. Here it comes, Shelby. Stay strong. Stand your ground._

_Before Cass could even say anything, Shelby blurted, "I miss you. So much."_

_Cass closed her mouth, as she was about to say something before Shelby cut her off, and raised an eyebrow. "You do?"_

_Shit. Shit shit shit shit...the things this woman does to you, Shelby, honestly._

_"Yes, sweetheart."_

_Sweetheart. Cassandra was dying inside. "I miss you, too, Shelbs. But you don't want me anymore."_

_"That's not true. I want you. God," The way Shelby said it was nearly a moan. "Do I want you. But we can't-"_

_"I know. I fucked it all up. I warned you that I would."_

_"Cassie, this isn't-"_

_"Save it, Shelby, you and I both know that's what you've been thinking."_

_Shelby bit her cheek and stayed silent. She deserved to be scolded._

_Finally, Cass spoke up again, crossing her arms over her chest. "I'm in rehab."_

_Shelby raised an eyebrow. She was admittedly very impressed. Clearly, she hadn't known Cassie as well as she thought she did-she had assumed Cass would just go back to drinking and try to move on. Apparently she had been seriously wrong._

_"Oh?" she couldn't hide the shock in her voice, which made Cass slightly self-conscious. Of course Shelby would be judging her and mistrusting after what had happened. "By choice?"_

_Damn it._

_"Well, no..." Cass moved her hair out of her face, coincidentally with the hand that was injured. It was starting to heal but was still very clearly damaged and that's when Shelby noticed it._

_"Cassie," she whispered, her voice nearly breaking. "What did you do?"_

_Defensively, and ashamed, Cass hid her hand behind her and said, "What do you care anymore, Shelby? I'm no longer yours, you made that clear. I'll see you tomorrow." _

_She shut the door and took a deep breath, to stop herself from losing it. For Rachel's sake._

_But it did make her a little more light hearted to know that Shelby had actually cared. Too bad that wasn't enough._

_Shelby stood, flabbergasted, behind the closed door. She knew she deserved it but that didn't make her feel any better about it._

_She went home alone, sad, scared for Cassandra, and worried about Rachel._

_She just wanted this nightmare to be over._

_And she wasn't sure anymore that just getting back with Cassie wasn't the right option._

_. . ._

_"How are you Mama?" Rachel asked._

_This actually made Cassie laugh, lightly, as they sat on the living room floor, ate popcorn, and colored pictures. Rachel couldn't only be five, she was too mature for that._

_"I'm not really doing so great, Rachie," she admitted to her daughter. She wasn't about to lie to her; what good would that really do anyways?_

_"Why are you and Mommy still fighting?"_

_She had a right to be curious, Cassie knew. She pressed her lips together and answered, "Mama did something she shouldn't have done, and it made Mommy mad at her."_

_With confused eyes, Rachel shook her head. "I don't think Mommy's mad at you," she said matter-of-factly. "Mommy misses you. She talks about you in her sleep."_

_"She," it took Cass a minute to comprehend that last bit. "She what?"_

_"She yells your name. I think she has nightmares. Maybe she's worried you're being eaten by monsters or something." Rachel shrugged. Mature but still ever the imaginative child._

_Maybe she's worried I'm being attacked by the alcohol monster, Cass thought to herself. Out loud she simply said, "Maybe. How do you know this happens?"_

_"I heard her scream "Cassie no!" the other night and thought she was talking to you. So I ran out to say hi to you but she was in bed, asleep, and crying. She was all shaky, Mama. She's been crying a lot." Rachel reflected. For once, Cass could not be more grateful that their little girl talked so much. If Shelby wouldn't tell her what was happening in their lives, Rachel sure as hell would. "I've never seen her so upset."_

_"She didn't look upset," Cass pointed out a little bitterly._

_"Neither did you but I know you are too." Rachel said in a "duh" sort of way. Curse her for being so smart and mouthy. Of course she learned from the best but that didn't excuse it._

_"Oh," Cassandra responded lamely. Rachel got on Cassie's lap and hugged her. "You two love each other and I love both of you and things will be okay again soon." Rachel seemed so sure of herself and Cass wished she could be so confident about the situation._

_She didn't want to give Rachel false hope about the situation but she didn't want to crush her little star either._

_"If you say so, Rachel," was all she could think to say._

_"I do." Rachel said simply._

_They spent the rest of the night making the most of it, laughing and singing and dancing. The little amount of time they had together went by too quickly. Rach slept in Cassie's bed with her, and she was fast asleep against her Mama when Cassie's phone flickered. She was thankful it was on silent._

_It was another text from Shelby._

**_Is she doing okay?_**

**_Rachel is fine, Shelby, stop worrying._**

**_...Are you okay, Cassie?_**

**_Define okay?_**

**_I'm so sorry._**

**_About?_**

**_Everything._**

_Cass took a minute to think over what they were saying to each other. She wasn't sure what Shelby was getting at._

**_What does that mean?_**

_Shelby almost said, IT MEANS I WANT YOU TO COME HOME AND KISS ME AND I WANT US TO LIVE HAPPILY EVER AFTER AND I'M SORRY WE HAD TO GO THROUGH ALL OF THIS BECAUSE I LOVE YOU SO VERY MUCH._

_Instead, she answered, __**Nothing, I guess. Just that I'm sorry. I suppose that doesn't really change anything, does it?**_

**_Not if you don't act on it._**

**_I can't. You know that._**

**_Oh, do I? I know what I did was wrong, Shelby, but I'm getting help. I really am trying._**

**_Trying...and succeeding?_**

**_Yes. I don't even want to think about alcohol. It's not even appetizing anymore._**

**_And what made you draw that conclusion?_**

**_You and Rachel._**

**_How do I know you aren't just saying all of this?_**

**_Why the fuck would I? _**_She wrote back, angrily._**_ What else do I have to lose, Shelby?!_**

**_What did you do to your hand, Cassie?_**

**_I'd rather not bring it back up._**

**_Then this conversation is over._**

**_Wait._**

_After a few agonizing minutes, Shelby replied, __**I'm here.**_

**_I love you._**

**_I know. I love you too._**

**_I cut myself with a piece of glass._**

**_Cassandra..._**

**_I didn't do it on purpose!_**

**_Really?_**

**_I wasn't thinking straight._**

**_You were drunk. _**_Shelby realized._

**_I drank the night you kicked me out and haven't touched any of it since. My neighbor found me clutching the broken bottle, called 911, I was sentenced to six weeks of rehab then got 3 more weeks tacked on after I refused to participate for the first little while...But I was so disgusted with myself, Shelby. I realized how badly I was hurting you, Rachel, all of us. I never want anything like that happening again and I...I hate this. I can't live without the two of you. This is killing me._**

**_I'm sorry._**

**_Is that all you can say to me?! Don't pretend this isn't killing you, too, Rachel told me you scream my name in your sleep._**

_Damn it, Shelby cursed to herself. She hadn't thought about Rachel giving away how things really were._

**_I...Perhaps I do. I've been having nightmares._**_She hated to admit it but at this point all the cards were on the table anyways, right?_

**_About me?_**

**_About losing you, forever._**

_Cassandra's heart about exploded. Did that mean...? What did that mean...?_

**_It's all up to you, Shelby. But I promise. I swear on my grave-on my soul-that I will never EVER hurt you again. It's my biggest regret. It's the worst thing I've ever done and I'm so sorry. I know that might not be enough-the words-but I will prove it to you. I will convince you and I will show you. I can't live without you, Shelby, I need you._**

**_I need you, too._**_And after a pause, Shelby knew what the right thing to do was. __**I need you here with me, in bed with me, next to me, right now.**_

**_...What?_**

**_Come home, Cassie. Please. I'm so sorry._**

_Cassandra wasn't desperate (well, maybe she was) but she was in love and those words "I need you, in bed with me, here with me, next to me, right now, come home Cassie please I'm so sorry" those words were enough to make her swoon. To melt her heart. To want her to go back home immediately. Even if it was midnight. The only thing she felt bad about was having to wake up Rachel to do so._

_"Hey panda boo," she shook her lightly. "Wake up, Rachie."_

_Slowly, Rachie fluttered her eyes and looked at the window. "It's not day, Mama," she said, a little flustered and frustrated that she was woken in the middle of the night._

_"I'm sorry baby girl, but we have to go back home."_

_"NO! I'm not going home! I want to say here, with you!" she was tired and she wanted to stay with her Mama-she wasn't going to leave her again._

_"Sweetie, I'm going with you," she laughed lightly, overjoyed at the recent turn of events, anxious to get back to Shelby-to hold her and kiss her and touch her and love her again. Wholeheartedly. Forever._

_Rachel sat up. "You...you are?"_

_"Yes, panda boo, we're going back home. For good."_

_"For really?"_

_"For really."_

_All traces of exhaustion seemed to leave as Rachel jumped up out of bed and got her stuff together. Mama took her little star back home, where they belonged._

_. . ._

_Shelby paced the living room. She knew this had to be the right decision. She knew how badly everyone was hurting-too much to be lying, for that matter. She missed her Cassie._

_She worried, because Cassie had never answered her back._

_She wasn't sure what was about to happen._

_But she was about to find out._

_Cass and Rachel made it through the door and Cassie walked right up to Shelby, taking her shoulders in her hands and shaking her once. "You make me so CRAZY sometimes, you know that?!" she demanded._

_Shelby's eyes widened but she smiled as she whispered, "I know," and had just enough time to do so before Cassie crashed her lips against Shelby's. She tasted like Shelby. Like safety. Like love. Like home._

_"I love you."_

_"I love you too."_

_"I'm sober."_

_"I know."_

_"Forever."_

_"I know."_

_"Oh, Shelby,"_

_"My Cassie."_

_And all had finally been well._

. . .

"We're going to be perfectly fine, baby," Shelby whispered, cuddling up to Cassie. "I promise. We're going to get married and be together forever and nothing will ever break us apart. We're an unbreakable unit. We're perfectly imperfect for each other and we drive each other crazy but we love each other and we will be wonderful."

She wasn't sure that Cass was still awake, and was slightly shocked when the blonde whispered back, "Do you promise?"

"I do."

* * *

**Special thanks to my sister, Pyxis, for helping me with this chapter in the midst of my writer's block, for coming up with the BEAUTIFUL flashback idea... And for getting me tea and apples at 4 in the morning... I love you, Pyx!**

**Xo Hayley**


	32. Permission and Parenting

**Another longgggg chapter for you all :)**

**I'M SO SORRY ABOUT THE CASE OF THE DISAPPEARING AND REAPPEARING CHAPTERS. I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT'S GOING ON WITH THEM. Bear with me, try to just recheck it every hour or so if it's not loading. Sometimes it's working sometimes it's not and i'm not sure why but it's really starting to piss me off. If you have any suggestions on how to fix it i'm all ears. But who knows, maybe it'll stop? *fingers crossed*.**

**This should've been finished a month ago when I started it, so I binge wrote last night (while making it through 11 episodes of Pretty Little Liars on Netflix. Time flies when you're multitasking. I thought I had only watched like 3 or 4 episodes... anyways...) that being said I suppose this and the other longg chapter were sort of my summer project and me making up for being gone.**

**I love you all! Keep the prompts coming! I'm writing them down and working on them as inspiration strikes!**

**Love always, Hayley**

* * *

**BroadwayNeon: What if Shelby's parents came in, and Cassie's did too, but Cassie's parents weren't too keen on their relationship, and Shelby was there to help her?**

**A/N: So here's the situation my mind came up with when I read that prompt-hope you like it alright! xD and also, I'm going to add in Cassie asking Shelby's parents for permission to marry her. That being said, Rachel is seven.**

* * *

**Permission and Parenting**

Shelby panicked, rushing around the house and cleaning every single thing she could find. Cassie sat on top of the counter, afraid to touch anything and endure Shelby's OCD rant AGAIN. She swung her legs and blew out a long, steady breath.

"You know," she said as her girlfriend washed the kitchen window for a fifth time. She didn't think she'd ever seen Shelby so nervous about anything in her life. BOTH sets of parents were going to be there at the SAME time. (Luckily for them, they owned two guest rooms. One was used as a voice room, which they took the baby grand out of, temporarily and put a blow up mattress in there—it would be where Cass and Shelbs would sleep for the weekend). "Our parents will hate us no matter how clean the house is…"

At this, Shelby rolled her eyes. "Yes, but at least they might hate us less."

This made Cassie smirk, slightly. She watched the woman she loved re-clean the counter after forcing Cass off of it.

"Don't sit up there again, Cass, people eat there." Shelby begged.

Cass smirked again, raising a devilish eyebrow. "You don't usually mind eating—"

Shelby kissed her lips softly to shut her up. "Not now, okay?"

"Okay." Cass pouted.

"Do you want help?"

"No," Shelby said with a thankful but apologetic smile . "Not right now."

What that really meant was, "Not from you." Shelby had to have things done her way. And Shelby's parents would be there within the hour. Shelby was most concerned about Cassie's parents (who basically hated EVERYTHING about the girls' relationship). Cassie was most concerned about Shelby's parents (because she was planning on asking them if she could marry Shelby, and if they said no she didn't know if she would be able to live).

"Okay," Cass said softly, heading to Rachel's room to check on her. The young girl was sitting on her bed, writing in a notebook. "Hey, you." She smiled at her daughter and sat down on the bed next to her, sneaking a glance into the notebook. Rachel had written,

Don't Rain on My Parade—work on pitch and long notes.

Funny Girl—work on breathing and theeactricalty.

Cass laughed lightly at her daughter's attempted spelling of "theatricality".

"Are you ready to see all your grandparents, Rach?" she asked.

Rachel nodded nervously. She didn't particularly love Shelby's parents and was terrified of Cassandra's parents. But they were her grandparents so she got through it the same way Cassie and Shelby did—terrified and wishing it was over from the start. But they were family, and Cassie and Shelby considered themselves lucky that either set of parents even kept in contact with them after their whole history and what-not. So Thanksgiving was always a big family thing. And it was about to be again. Only this year it was even more nerve wracking. Because Cassie was asking Shelby's parents for marriage permission and was pretty sure they were going to say no. Of course, Rachel didn't know this. But still!

"Is Mommy freaking out about dinner?" Rachel asked, knowingly.

"She practically kicked me out of the kitchen, munchkin," Cassie nodded with a shrug.

"Hmm." Rachel put her pencil to her chin in thought before setting her notebook and pencil off to the side and hopping down off of her bed. "Maybe if we sing her something she'll feel better?" she suggested.

Cassie always found Rachel's willingness to sing and practice singing amusing. "How about you sing and I'll play piano for you? What song did you have in mind?"

Mere seconds later, Cassie was out playing on the grand piano in the living room and Rachel was standing out in front of it, singing,

"_There is a castle on a cloud,_

_I like to go there in my sleep._

_Aren't any floors for me to sweep_," she gave her Mommy a condescending look. Shelby had stopped sweeping to look up and see Rachel-her little daughter-being cocky, just like her Mama. Shelby scrunched up her nose at her and kept sweeping. Rachel shook her head and threw her hands up in defeat and sighed, dramatically. Cassie laughed and almost faltered the song but Rachel kept singing.

"_Not in my castle on a cloud._

_There is a room that's full of toys,_

_There are a hundred boys and girls,_

_Nobody shouts or talks too loud,_

_Not in my castle on a cloud_."

At this point, Shelby couldn't help but to stop cleaning and go over to her daughter. They LOVED this song (this musical, in general) and ALWAYS sang this part together. Darn their traditions. Shelby smiled and picked Rachel up into her arms and harmonized with her as they sang,

"_There is a lady all white,_

_Holds me and sings a lullaby,_

_She's nice to see and she's soft to touch,_

_She says Cosette, I love you very much._

_I know a place where no one's lost,_

_I know a place where no one cries,_

_Crying at all is not allowed,_

_Not in my castle on a cloud_."

Shelby put Rachel down and clapped her hands together. Rachel beamed.

"Are you happy now, Mommy?" she asked.

"You always make me happy, Rachel," she smiled back.

"Yay!"

"But that doesn't mean I can stop cleaning."

Rachel scowled.

"Shelby, baby, please calm down," Cassie stood and wrapped her arms around Shelby's waist, kissing her cheek. "The house is spotless. Please, just relax until your parents get here, okay? And go change into something parent worthy, or you know your proper parents will throw a fit." she held on to Shelby's waist as Shelby started to walk to the bedroom, meanwhile Rachel stayed at the piano, laughing at her mommies' silliness.

"What are you doing?" Shelby asked as they walked and entered their bedroom.

"Hugging you."

"Being clingy," Shelby fought back with a laugh, turning her head and placing a soft peck on Cassie's lips. "Get it all out of your system now, because once our parents get here there can be no kisses or touches of any kind. Or suggestive speaking. You need to keep that in check."

"Mmm," Cass pulled Shelby's face towards her passionately and crashed their lips together. "Mmmmm, why do you think I'm doing it all now?"

"Cassie," Shelby breathed against Cassie's lips. "We really don't have time-"

"You need to relax," Cass spoke against Shelby's lips. "Just let it happen."

"Okay,"

Shelby let her mouth be attacked by Cassandra's as her heart started beating faster and faster. After a minute she placed a soft kiss on Cassie's neck and whispered against it, "I need to get dressed now."

"Mind if I stay and watch?"

"You're such a little perv." Shelby smirked.

Cassandra shrugged. "I can't help myself."

"I know," Shelby gave her a small smile then took her tank top off and searched for a parent-approved blouse. "Cassie I'm so nervous," she said.

Cass raised an eyebrow. "With a rack like that I'm not sure you have room to be nervous,"

Shelby spun around and cast her a glance. "I was talking about our parents," she smacked her with her tank top.

"Just trying to lighten the mood," Cass sing-songed.

"You're lucky I love you," Shelby sing-songed back, settling on a black blouse and grey pencil skirt.

With an eye roll, Cass muttered, "You shouldn't have to dress so professionally in the comfort of your own house."

"I know, I know," Shelby said, pulling her sweat pants off and putting the skirt on over it before pausing. "Maybe I should take a shower...?"

Cass eyed the clock and sucked in a breath. "Do you have time?"

"Think WE would have time?" Shelby wondered.

"Is this Shelby Corcoran, suggesting stress-shower sex?" Cass raised an eyebrow. Before she could take the conversation much further, the doorbell rang. Cass jumped up off of the bed like there were hot coals on it-like a nun had caught her watching lesbian porn. "Your parents," she hissed.

Shelby let out a long sigh. "Thus we had absolutely NO time, and this excruciatingly long weekend has begun."

Cassie was not about seeing Shelby's parents. The second the doorbell rang Cassandra felt like she was going to throw up. There was no way in hell she was going to get permission to marry their daughter. It'd be better if she didn't ask. But she didn't want to NOT ask them and make them hate her even more than they already did. Baby steps...right? RIGHT?!

"I guess I'll go let them in," Cass kissed Shelby quickly for a last time and walked out of the bedroom and towards the front door, which Rachel had already swung open. She was hugging her grandparents and giving the best fake smile the little girl could give. Cassie smirked. Rachel was going to be the best little actress. Once Rachel was done hugging them, she went back to the piano and started playing some classical music Shelby had taught her for the occasion. Because it was easier to just please Shelby's parents then to argue with them.

"Welcome, Mr. and Mrs. Corcoran," Cassie gave them a warm smile and they nodded at her.

"Cassandra," Mrs. Corcoran said stiffly. Cassie's mouth went dry.

_I can't do this. I'm not ready for this. What if they kill me when I ask? What if they kidnap me and tie me to a chair and tell Shelby I was in some freak accident then torture me for loving their daughter? GOD they're so fucking intimidating... I'm freaking out. I needed the stress sex. Wait, don't think about stress sex while you're standing in front of her parents. AHH. Kill me now._

Outwardly, Cass continued to smile. "Shelby," she called down the hallway. "Your parents are here," she tried to say it cheerfully. Based on the blank faces of Shelby's parents, she wasn't sure she had succeeded.

"I'm coming," Shelby breathed out a smile as she walked down the hallway towards them. One of the things Cassie loved about her girlfriend was her quick-transformation abilities. She just gone from sweaty cleaning OCD mess to perfectly poised beauty in work clothes in like five minutes. She rushed past Cassie and hugged her mom tightly before hugging her dad.

"Mother, father, I've missed you so much," she smiled. It was only half a truth. "It's been too long, truly." it was a complete lie.

"Well perhaps if everyone wasn't always so busy," Shelby's mom smiled, if not bitterly. "But we're here now, aren't we?"

Cassie silently attended to their bags. Shelby's parents were sleeping in Shelby and Cassie's room. Shelby had remade the bed quickly when Cass left the room to open the door, (fresh sheets and comforter and pillow cases were put on earlier that day). Not making a sound, Cass took the bags to Shelby's room. She dreaded the minute her parents would show up, too. She really didn't know why she and Shelby were stupid enough to have them all in the same house. No one could stand each other, and all of the fighting and tension around the house was definitely not good for Rachel. Or for anybody.

After Cass walked back to the living room, she almost, ALMOST, out of habit, took Shelby's hand, but caught herself and started fidgeting with her own hands, which had suddenly become clammy. She felt so sick.

She had never been so nervous about anything in her life. Not her NYADA audition, not her Broadway debut and going outside after the Crazy July Incident, nothing.

Shelby seemed to notice her discomfort but didn't think anything of it. She figured it was just parent nerves like they usually got. She had no idea...

. . .

Cassie's parents arrived 2 hours later (greeted with a tentative hug from Cassie-Cass didn't even get along with her parents so she didn't really expect everybody else to) and that's when her heart felt like it was going to fall out of her chest. She wasn't sure she could do this.

Shelby was feeling quite the same way, just without the proposal permission stress on top of it.

Rachel was just there. Acting her little head off and being the perfect little girl she always used to like to pretend to be.

They all sat down in the living room, Cassie uncomfortably sitting as far away from Shelby as she possibly could, (she didn't want any parents going off at her for sitting too close or holding her hand or whatever. She just didn't feel like hearing it tonight. She was nervous enough as it was).

Rachel sat on Cassie's lap, Shelby sat on the couch next to her parents, and Cassie's parents sat in chairs. For a minute they all just looked at each other.

Shelby and Cassie hated the awkwardness every time they visited.

Cass noticed that Rachel was shivering in her lap and wasn't sure if it was from fear or because she was cold. It was pretty freezing. The autumn air was starting to turn crisp and wintery. But the parents liked the windows open. So the windows were open.

"Are you cold sweetheart?" Cassie wondered. "Why don't you go put a sweater on, okay?"

Nodding in agreement, Rachel ran off towards her room. Shelby's mother, Judy, cleared her throat. "How long have the two of you been together now?"

With a swallow, Shelby counted in her head and responded. "Nine years, mom. Almost ten."

"Mmm," she pressed her lips together. "I'm very happy for the two of you." The women could tell that she wasn't, but it was a nice gesture all the same.

Cass's dad, Jason, cleared his throat and asked. "Has Rachel shown interest in...In girls?"

Wanting to cover her face in embarrassment, Cassandra said, "She's seven, dad, and you don't have to stutter the word. It isn't exactly a bad thing around here, you know?"

"I'm aware, Cassandra." he said stiffly. "I still don't approve."

"I'm aware, father," Cass said stiffly back. "You don't have to remind me every time you visit."

Shelby shifted uncomfortably on the couch and Cass's face reddened. She shot Shelby a look that said "save me from this hell hole" and Shelby gave her a sympathetic look back. She changed the subject for her lover's sake.

"Rachel did great in her autumn concert," she noted. "I think she has serious start potential."

"We thought that of Cassandra, until she ruined her career," Cass's mother, Megan said. "Don't count your chickens before they hatch, Shelby."

Shelby went silent, unsure what else to say now. Cass felt ready to scream.

Rachel came back out into the room in her gold star sweater-one of her favorites. She loved gold stars almost as much as Shelby did. The young girl ran over to Cassie again and jumped up on to her lap. "Mama," she pouted.

"What's the matter, sweetheart?" Cassie questioned her, stroking her hair softly.

"I can't find Babs." she complained. "I don't know where she went."

"Babs?" Judy was admittedly curious.

"Her favorite stuffed Panda," Shelby explained. "I'm sure she's close by, Rach. We can look for her after dinner, okay?"

Rach stuck out her lower lip and crossed her arms. Cass and Shelby exchanged a nervous glance, and prayed to god that Rachel wouldn't throw a tantrum. Not now, when things were already so tense. "Fine." even Rachel knew that throwing a tantrum wasn't in anybody's best interest. But she had wanted Babs as a comfort to her. She didn't like the awkward feeling in her house almost as much as her moms didn't, and though they were all dramatic in their own right, this just felt way too theatrical for anybody's liking. Nobody got along, and it really didn't feel like family.

Another awkward silence passed before Shelby decided that eating dinner was in order. "Is everyone ready for dinner?" she asked, standing and walking towards the dining room (it was a temporary dining room that Shelby and Cassie had set up for the occasion. The family usually ate at the kitchen counter/island thing.). Everyone followed her and her and Cassie made work of getting all the food on the table while everyone sat down.

When they returned and sat at the table with everyone, they found that Megan was talking to Rachel. "How has your life been here, Rachel?" she wondered.

The seven year old looked up at her Mama with confused eyes and Cassie shrugged, silently telling her to just answer and make things less complicated.

"Um, life is good," she answered, awkwardly. "What do you mean?"

"Are things different, since you have two mothers and no father?"

Shelby widened her eyes. One dinner! Couldn't they just get through ONE dinner?! Cass clicked her tongue and rolled her eyes. "Mom-"

Megan held her hand up to tell Cass to stop talking and gestured towards Rachel. "Go on, dear."

"Well, um, I don't really know what it's like to have a father..." Rachel started. This comment sort of broke her mothers' hearts, slightly, the way she said it, but then she continued, "But I really don't care. I love my life, and I love my moms-both of them." The women smiled a little more.

"Can we not talk about all of this at dinner?" Cass practically begged. "Can we just have a nice family dinner? Shelby's worked so hard-"

"What's nicer than talking about family, dear?" Megan asked her, stiffly. Cass stopped talking. Her mother had that effect on her. She took a small bite of food and chewed on it sullenly. It tasted amazing, but it couldn't distract her from what she knew was ahead.

Maybe, she thought to herself, she just wouldn't ask. Maybe she'd just marry Shelby and they'd get the wedding invitation in the mail (that is if SHELBY said yes. She knew she was getting a bit ahead of herself). But no, she thought angrily, that would just piss everyone off more.

"This is admittedly very good, girls." Shelby's father, Charles, said after a pause. "Did you make it Cassandra?"

Megan and Jason laughed. They actually laughed. Cass put her head in her hands and Megan answered for her, "Please. Cassandra can't go near a kitchen without nearly exploding it. Shelby must've made all of this."

"Did you do anything to help Shelby today, Cassandra?" Jason scolded. "Do you let her do everything?"

Before Cass could protest, Shelby did for her. "Cassie helped me clean, and she kept Rachel busy and helped her rehearse all day." Not to mention kept me sane, Shelby neglected to mention aloud.

"Hmm." Megan seemed unimpressed. "Maybe you should teach her how to cook, Shelby, in case you aren't home one night and she and Rachel need to eat."

"Why wouldn't Shelby be home?" Cassandra asked coldly.

"It was just a suggestion, Cassandra, there's no need for you to get snappy with me."

Cassandra wasn't sure she'd last the weekend without seriously injuring someone and she had a slight idea who that someone might be. She swallowed her bite of food, dared to not look at Shelby and mumbled, "I'm going to go to the bathroom."

"Were you excused from this table?" Megan demanded.

Cass spun around and raised an eyebrow. "This is my house, I wasn't aware I had to ask to be excused from my own dining room table but if you insist," she spun around and looked at Shelby, whose eyes were wide in shock. She had seen things heat up between Cassandra and her mother before but never this intensely. "May I be excused, Shelby, dear?" she asked of her girlfriend.

Shelby didn't want Cassie to feel like she had power over her but she knew Cassie wanted her to play along. She nodded slightly and Cassandra curtsied, storming off to the bathroom and slamming the door behind her. She was making a horrible impression on Shelby's parents, for someone who wanted to ask for marriage permission, she knew, but she couldn't stand for her mother and father to constantly talk her down like that anymore! For god's sake she was an adult! This was her house and they couldn't bully her anymore! Damn it, she was not going to deal with this. She couldn't go through this again. She was NEVER good enough for them. Nothing she ever did pleased them, least of all her relationship with Shelby.

Shelby, god, Shelby, what must she think about all of this?! She must think I'm a failure, Cass sighed to herself. And probably rightfully so.

Meanwhile, Shelby sat at the dinner table with her parents and Shelby's parents and little confused Rachel. She honestly didn't want to leave the table out of fear they would ask Rachel more questions about her home life. Not that they had anything to hide, but Rachel really didn't need to be thrown into the mix of all of this.

But she knew Cass needed her. That she was on the verge of a meltdown.

"The NERVE of her sometimes," Megan shook her head.

"Excuse me," Shelby mumbled, pushing her chair back and getting up from the table, heading towards the bathroom.

"You two can't do anything for yourselves can you?" Jason mumbled. "Always doing things together... It's almost disgusting."

"My mothers are not disgusting!" Rachel exclaimed, shocked that her Mama's dad would say such a thing.

"Rachel Corcoran, you can't talk to your grandfather like that, it's impolite," July scolded her.

Rachel stuck out her lip and crossed her arms over her chest. Why did her mommies go through this every year? What good was family-even if they were family by blood-if it didn't really FEEL like family?! "Sorry," she mumbled, knowing she would be scolded again if she didn't.

Shelby knocked lightly on the door-four light taps. "Cassie, sweetheart, are you okay?" she asked through the wood, slightly quietly so those in the "dining room" wouldn't hear.

"I'm fine." Cass muttered pathetically.

Jiggling the doorknob, Shelby found it locked. She sighed. "I know that's your code for, "hug me, Shelby. Kiss me and take me away from this awful place"...Can I come in?"

Cass actually managed a light laugh. "That's an awful lot of translation for one word. How do you know I'm not naked in here?"

"Hmm. Well I think I'll risk it," Shelby smirked and even though Cass couldn't see it, she could practically hear it in her voice. She smiled a light smile and unlocked the door.

She found Cassie sitting on the counter, (completely clothed, by the way), dangling her feet over the edge. Her face slightly puffy from getting all worked up. "Some Thanksgiving dinner, huh?" she sniffed, staring down at her dangling feet. "It's almost as if my parents are slightly thankful for my existence. Almost."

"Cassie, baby," Shelby approached her after shutting the door and put her hands on Cassie's knees. "Your parents love you."

"Do they?" Cass scoffed. "Could've fooled me."

Shelby slowly, seductively, ran her hands up Cassie's legs, making the blonde shiver, in an attempt to distract her. It almost worked. "They have high expectations just like my parents, Cassie, but we're going to make it through this like we do every year. It's going to be okay."

"I don't see your parents insulting your every move in front of your family," Cass sighed. "Ugh I can't believe them. Can they ever just be happy for me?! Is there anything I can do to please them?!"

"You don't have to, Cassie, baby. They can't control you," Shelby said softly. "It doesn't matter what they think of you, Cassie. I love you, and Rachel loves you and we're both so proud of you."

Cassandra scoffed. "Ever the hypocrite. Didn't you spend all day cleaning to please your parents?"

"Okay so maybe both of our parents' suck." Shelby agreed.

"I'm a fuck up," Cassie sighed. "At least in their eyes and that's all I'll ever be. Is it just me or have they actually gotten worse since last year?"

"I think they actually have..." Shelby nodded softly. "But you're definitely not a fuck up."

Cass let a tear slip down her cheek and Shelby kissed it away, tasting the salt in her mouth-practically tasting the hurt that Cassie was feeling along with it. She knew it was never easy for Cassie to see her parents. They were a royal pain in the ass and a serious handful.

Cass moaned softly at the intimacy of Shelby's kissing away her tears and Shelby gasped lightly against Cassie's skin. They hadn't been so intimate in a while. They needed this moment, even if only for a minute.

"They're your parents by blood, Cassie," Shelby whispered against Cassandra's cheek. "But they're not your family. I am. Rachel is. You don't have to go through this every year. Not if it makes you so miserable."

"They just..." Cassie sighed and picked Shelby up, pulling her onto her lap with her and holding her head to her cheek. "They remind me of what it was like when I was younger. I can't help but wonder why I let them back into my life after...after everything they've put me through..."

"Shh, sweetheart," Shelby soothed her. "It's going to be okay. I know you don't want to hear this but we have to get back out there before they start to get ideas-"

"I know."

"You're amazing."

"I'm not."

"You are so bright." Shelby continued. "You are incredible. And best of all," she smiled against Cassie's cheek and giggled softly. "You are mine." she accented the word "mine" and squeezed Cassie tightly. Cassie actually managed a smile. Shelby could always make her smile.

One after the other they headed back out into the dining room and finished dinner, doing dishes with each other afterwards and then listening to Rachel sing a few songs before they had to search for Babs and put her to bed.

Cassie and Shelby searched all over Rachel's room, the living room, the kitchen, the guest room, everywhere. Babs was nowhere to be found and Rachel refused to rest until she was. Cassie let out a sigh and murmured in Shelby's ear, "Maybe we should just let her sit out here with us until she falls asleep. I don't want her to throw a fit..."

"You're right," Shelby whispered back. "She won't last much longer anyways."

"Secrets don't make friends, Shelby." Charles smiled but Shelby could see it was forced. Shelby forced a smile back then pressed her lips together and turned to Rachel. "Alright baby girl, you want to just stay out here with us for a little while?"

Rachel nodded slowly. "Okay..."

"I don't understand why she needs a stuffed animal to sleep," Judy said with a slight scowl of disappointment. "She is seven years old, after all."

"Right," Shelby defended. "She's only seven. She's a little girl. Just because you made me grow up too fast doesn't mean Rachel has to."

"What's been going on in your life, Mom?" Cass interrupted. Shelby was thankful-she didn't want to start another fight.

"Oh the usual, business and such. Are you still teaching at that wretched college?"

"It's the most highly regarded performing arts college in the country!" Shelby defended automatically. "Cassie is an amazing dancer and an incredible teacher."

"You call her Cassie. That's rather intimate." Megan noted.

"We have been together for nine years," Cass muttered. "Intimacy isn't exactly a new thing for us." she reddened the second she said it and Megan dropped her jaw.

"That's inappropriate to talk about." she said. "Especially in front of Rachel."

"I'm sorry."

Rachel double blinked. "I know Mommy and Mama are together," she stated. "It's not a secret, Gram."

Megan looked taken aback, clearly finding Rachel too outspoken and Shelby widened her eyes, praying to god that Rachel would get tired soon.

Why hadn't they just kicked all of the parents out by now?! Well they were family. But Shelby and Cassie were starting to believe that was no excuse anymore.

Rachel let out a yawn, unaffected by Megan's taken aback state, and curled up in her Mommy's lap. Shelby held her and Cass's heart started pounding. She knew that possibly the only alone time she could get with the parents was if Shelby put Rachel to bed alone. If Rachel was starting to fall asleep...she'd have to ask soon.

She started going through what she was going to say in her head.

_'I'm in love with your daughter'_, too straight forward.

_'I wanted to know if,_' no, don't sound so unsure.

_'I promise to love Shelby for the rest of my life'_. It left her open too early for rejection. Her palms started to sweat again. She hadn't been this nervous in a long time.

Rachel fell asleep way too quickly and Shelby stood slowly so as not to wake her, her arms wrapped around her. Cass stood and placed a soft kiss on Rachel's forehead. "I love you, little star." she whispered warmly. "Do you want me to take her?" Cass hoped, slightly, that she would get herself out of this and do it another time.

"No, sweetheart, it's fine, I've got her," Shelby smiled softly, in spite of accidentally calling her sweetheart in front of the parents.

"Okay," her heart felt like it was going to fall out of her chest. She felt faint. Like she might be sick. Shelby left the room and Cass stood awkwardly in front of the four most judgmental people she had ever meant (and living a life in theatre, that was really saying something).

Megan cleared her throat and said, "Do you have something to say to us dear? No need to be shy."

Cassie dry swallowed before answering, "Not to you," and turning to Judy and Charles. She took a deep breath and blurted out, "I want to marry Shelby."

Judy and Charles didn't look entirely upset, but they both had raised eyebrows and wide eyes. "Oh? Cassandra that's-"

Megan stood up and struck Cassie across the face, hard. She unintentionally let out a gasp of pain, the force of the slap knocking her hard to the ground. "I did NOT raise you to be a little DYKE!" Megan yelled at her. Cass stood slowly, mortified, her face stinging, her hand over her cheek.

"How could you?" She whispered, terrified (and not for the first time, mind you) of her own mother. "I am your DAUGHTER."

"Then act like it!" Jason stood now, glaring. "There's something wrong with you. We messed up somehow. These feelings you have for women...we had thought it was just a college phase but it's been ten years, Cassandra and it's time to stop fooling around with this rotten sin of yours! You can't marry Shelby."

"I don't have feelings for WOMEN," Cass spat. "I have feelings for SHELBY. I am in LOVE with SHELBY. This isn't a phase! I'm not doing this for attention! If I wanted to do this for attention I wouldn't have put up with your SHIT for this long!"

From Rachel's bedroom, Shelby tucked their little star in and knew something was wrong the moment she heard the crack. It sounded like something breaking and she was immediately concerned. She shut Rachel's door slowly behind her, so as not to wake her, and made her way out to the corner when she heard Cassie yell,

"I don't have feelings for WOMEN, I have feelings for SHELBY. I am in LOVE with SHELBY..."

Her eyes widened. What had she just missed? Clearly something important. She rushed out from behind the corner to see Cassie taken aback after hearing another crack. Had she just been slapped?! Is that what happened the first time as well? Oh, her poor Cassie.

She ran up behind Cassie and took her arm lightly. Cass turned, relieved, her eyes watering, and then looked back at her mother and father.

"I LOVE her," she said again.

"And I love her," Shelby added. She wasn't sure what she had missed but she was sure as hell there now, and she'd be damned if she wasn't going to do all she could to help.

"Do you know what she's asking your parents, Shelby?" Megan challenged. "She's asking for permission to-"

"NO, she doesn't know. I was asking permission first." Cass said firmly. Way to be able to keep a proposal a secret. Could she do nothing right?

"Permission for what?" Shelby wondered, blankly. What was going on in this household?!

"Nothing, baby, I'll explain it later, I promise," Cass said in a rush.

"Baby," Jason rolled his eyes. "You call her Baby."

"Well I figured if I called her sexy around you, you might BEAT me again," Cassandra was scathing. She had finally reached her point of no return.

"Cassie, take a breath," Shelby warned.

"NO!" Cassie turned on her parents. "It's not fair. This is my home and this is Shelby's home and this is Rachel's home and you have NO RIGHT to come in here and smack me and tell me what I'm doing wrong with my life. You can't beat the gay out of me, okay? It didn't work before and it's not going to work now! You can't hurt me for just being me. And you know what? I love Shelby and Rachel more than I love myself. More than I've ever loved anything else. I will protect them with EVERYTHING I have until the day that I die and I will make sure someone takes over the job when that happens! I promise to love them forever and always. I will love Shelby until the ends of time, and I will protect her and love her and cherish her because she is the most amazing thing that has ever happened to me and you can try and try to beat it out of me but it will NEVER work. Our love is eternal. That doesn't mean there's something wrong with me. Something is wrong with YOU for believing the way you do. For being so close minded about your own DAUGHTER. Have you no hearts?!"

She finished her rant, panting, and Shelby held her hand to Cassie's back. She was so proud of her lover. How strong and brave Cassandra was acting-standing up to her parents, no matter how much it hurt her, no matter how afraid she was of them. And she was afraid. Shelby could see it in her eyes. She could feel it-Cassie was shaking in her arms.

"You need to tone down your attitude young lady." Megan was outraged, but not nearly as badly as Cassandra seemed to be. "This behavior is unacceptable."

"I am an ADULT. You don't have a say in my entire life's choices anymore, okay?! YOUR behavior is unacceptable."

"Do you forget your place?" Jason asked. "Remember that we are your parents. You are the child."

"Yeah well not anymore dad, sorry to break it to you. If I want to marry Shelby then god damn it, I WILL. And if she doesn't want to marry me then FINE, but it isn't up to YOU."

"Marry?" Shelby knew now probably wasn't the best time to ask but she couldn't help but say something about it. That's what this fight was about? Her heard exploded in and she couldn't help but be turned on by Cassandra's ferocity. This began because she wanted to ask Shelby to marry her? As in "to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, until death do us part" marriage? As in standing in a dress at the altar you may now kiss the bride marriage? _Well duh Shelby, is there another kind of marriage?_ Her dazzling green eyes found Cassie's and Cass realized her mistake in mentioning it, but she whispered,

"Yeah, Shelby. Marry. But this isn't an official proposal. That needs to be more bad ass. I WILL give you your official proposal."

Shelby was awestruck and turned her attention to Cassandra's parents. "I'm not sure you're welcome in this house anymore," she said. She couldn't help the small smile that appeared on her lips at Cassie's mention of a "bad ass" proposal.

Cass raised an eyebrow, impressed that Shelby actually stood up to her parents for her.

Megan dropped her jaw. "You're going to let her treat us like this, Cassandra? I thought we raised you better."

"Apparently you didn't raise me well at all," Cass scoffed. "And if Shelby doesn't treat you like that, then I will. Get out."

"Excuse me?!"

"Do I have to spell it for you?" Cass demanded. "Get your stuff and get out. You no longer control me, you can't hurt me anymore. I'm not afraid anymore."

"We are your parents-" Jason spoke up.

"By blood," Cass cast a glance and Shelby and gave her a small smile. "But you're not my family." she looked back at her parents, who were shocked and looked very angry. They took a few minutes to go into the guest bedroom and get their things, and then they left.

Cass let out a deep breath she didn't know she was holding as she shut the door behind her. They were gone, she realized. She was free. No longer held by their chains. Adrenaline pumping through her body. She felt...alive. Ready to start her life anew. With Shelby, and Rachel. Without the fear of her parents.

Shelby placed a quick kiss to Cassandra's temple and whispered, "That was amazing. And such a turn on. And I'm so proud of you. And what you did just now...sticking up for us...it was so romantic, Cassie. And very hot."

"Your parents are still out in the living room," Cassie let out a shaky laugh and Shelby left hot, fiery kisses against her skin.

"Well we should probably go talk to them," Shelby agreed.

They made it out to the living room to see some very shocked looking parents.

Cass started talking immediately. "I am SO SO sorry you had to see that, my parents are...well they're no longer a problem. I know that probably was not a very good impression and I can understand if you don't want me to marry your daughter, and I really hope that didn't wake up Rachel-"

"I'll check on Rachel," Shelby offered, leaving the room.

"Cassandra, stop talking," Judy said. Cassie did so immediately but recognized that Judy was using a soft tone, not a forceful one. She even...did Cassie dare think...had a small smile forming on her lips.

"I want you to marry Shelby," Judy continued.

Cass forgot how to breathe. "You...what?"

Judy actually laughed, as did Charles, and Cassie joined her, nervously.

"I want you to marry Shelby, that is, if Shelby says yes-"

"She'll say yes," Charles rolled his eyes with a smile.

"I want you to marry her, protect her, love her, and take care of her. Just like you said. For the rest of your lives. Promise you'll never hurt her-"

"I promise."

"Never EVER let her go."

"I won't," Cassandra was overjoyed. So much had happened that night but she knew, with the blessing of Shelby's parents and her own parents gone, that things might actually start to be okay. Now she just had to get Rachel's blessing. Somehow she thought that might be a little easier.

. . .

"You. Are." Shelby spoke to Cass in the guest bedroom. She had locked the door. She ripped her shirt off over her head and Cassie smiled like a little girl on Christmas morning. "SO. Amazing." Shelby continued, moving towards Cass who was sitting on the bed, and getting on her lap, showering her with kisses.

Cassie giggled as Shelby knocked her onto her back, embracing her lovingly, her chest throbbing with want.

"I wasn't that amazing," Cassie said modestly.

"Don't be modest," Shelby called her out on her bullshit, working to get Cassie's shirt off. "And we forgot to bring pajamas in here."

"Hmm. What a shame," Cassandra hummed.

"I think we'll manage," Shelby whispered seductively.

"Mmmm," Cass moaned against her touch and Shelby held a finger to her lips.

"Don't be too loud," she warned.

"No promises if you keep touching me like that..." Cass smiled lightly.

. . .

They laid, breathless, against each other.

Once Shelby was able to speak, she whispered, "You asked if you could marry me. You asked them permission to marry me?"

"Well of course," Cass said. "It's only customary, right?" breathed out, turning her head to look at her.

Shelby laughed lightly trailing her fingers lightly against Cassandra's abs-against her bare stomach. "For the gentleman to ask the lady's parents. Are you considering yourself the gentleman now? What if I was going to propose to you?"

Cass scoffed. "Do you honestly expect me to believe you were going to ask MY parents for permission? No way. They would've beaten you more than they did me. I can't put you through that."

Their conversation went from cute to serious in seconds. Shelby's smile faded. Her hand stopped its circular movement and instead laid flat against Cass's flushed skin.

"Is your face okay, Cassie?" she asked lightly.

Cass smirked. "I don't know, did it taste okay?"

She couldn't help but smile at Cassie's antics, but was still serious. "Cass," she said softly.

"It hurts," Cass admitted. Even more so now that her rush of adrenaline was gone-she was starting to feel the sting of both of her mother's slaps.

"Let me see," Shelby very carefully turned Cassie's face to the side. Cass scrunched her nose, wincing slightly. While they had been fooling around, Shelby had steered clear of her face. She'd had other body parts in mind that she had wanted to pepper with kisses. But now that she was really looking, "It's starting to bruise. We should get ice on it."

Cass turned her head and checked the clock. "At four in the morning?"

Shelby's eyes widened. "No way," she sat up, her body sprawled across Cass as she turned to look at the clock. "Holy shit." she mumbled. "Time flies when you're-"

Cass pulled her down to her and kissed her lips lightly. "Having sex?"

Shelby laughed. "Oh, you know it's time to get married when we start finishing each other's'-"

"Sentences?"

"Sandwiches."

"Rachel's been making you watch too much Frozen."

"Still though," Shelby laughed. "That movie came out three years ago."

"Well, she's your daughter. Maybe it's her Funny Girl."

Shelby shook her head. "Funny Girl is her Funny Girl."

With another kiss, Cassie said, "It's late. We need to sleep, tomorrow's your parents' Christmas with Rachel."

"Okay," Shelby whispered, pulling her head down to rest on Cassie's chest. "Things are going to be different now, aren't they?"

"I think so, Shelby."

. . .

"Merry Christmas, Rachel," Cassie shook Rachel lightly to wake her up. "Come on, little star, you have presents waiting."

Cass and Shelby had woken up exhausted, but got up early enough to take showers and by the time they were done with those, their room was empty so they could get dressed. Shelby was already on her third cup of coffee and it's was eight o'clock. Her and her caffeine...

"Mama..." Rachel complained, rolling over to her side and fluttering her eyes. "It's not Christmas. I didn't sleep for a month. I'm tired."

"Oh you think you're tired?" Cassie laughed. "I got four hours of sleep last night now wake up, you," she giggled and started tickling Rachel's sides. She realized it was sort of her fault that they were up until 4, but after all the pain she had gone through the night before, staying up for a little bit of pleasure was totally worth it.

Rachel laughed and twisted, trying her best to get out of Cassandra's grasp. She failed miserably. "Mamaaaaaa..." She laughed. "Stop ittttt."

"Neverrrrrr," Cassie laughed. "Don't you want to see what grandma and grandpa got you?"

Rachel sat up and rubbed her eyes with a wide yawn. Her face puffy from having just woken up. "What about gramps and gram?" she wondered.

Cassandra's face reddened. "Sweetheart, they had to leave early," she said softly. Rachel's eyes widened large as softballs when Cassie turned her head to the side, seeing the bruise.

"Did gramps do that to you?!" she wondered.

Was there a point in lying? Probably, to protect her little mind of the bad things. But Rachel was mature and she was wise, and she knew that Cassandra's parents were harsh.

"Gram did, baby." she whispered. "But we're not going to talk about it, okay? It's all over now."

With a small, scared little nod, Rachel wondered, "But why?"

"She got upset, Rachel, you know how some people don't understand my relationship with Mommy? She's one of those people. And I asked Mommy's parents if it would be alright if I asked Mommy to marry me-" at the sound of marriage, Rachel's face lit up and she clapped her hands together. "-and I got their permission but my parents didn't like that. Anyways," she gave her daughter a coy smile. She figured now would be as good as any time to ask. "Do I have YOUR permission, Rachel?"

Rachel nodded her head up and down very quickly. "Yes yes yes! Can I be the flower girl?!"

Laughing Cass whispered, "Yes, yes, but we can't talk about it in front of Mommy, okay?"

Nodding, Rachel said, "Okay. But doesn't she know why gram hit you?"

"Yes," Cass said, "And she knows I'm going to propose. But she doesn't know when, or how, and I'd like to at least keep THAT a secret."

Rachel laughed. "You don't even know, do you?"

Their daughter was so smart. Cass playfully knocked her onto her back. "Alright you, you'd better get dressed and wash your face and brush your hair. Mommy made waffles with strawberries and chocolate chips."

"Yayyy!" Rachel's yay was muffled by her blanket, for when she fell backwards, her blanket draped lightly over top of her.

"You're silly, Rachel."

"No, YOU'RE silly, Mama," Rachel said back.

Cass kissed her forehead through the blanket and walked out to the kitchen to find Shelby, eating waffles and drinking more coffee. Cass leaned against the counter next to her. "Am I going to have to cut you off from the caffeine?" She wondered, only half joking. "Ease up. You're a performer, you can make it through the day without it."

"You," Shelby swallowed a bite then put another on the fork, offering it out to Cassie. Cass took it in her mouth and smiled. She'd die without Shelby's cooking. "Just be thankful it's coffee I'm drinking and not red bull."

Cass shuddered in mock fear. "Shelby Corcoran hyped on red bull...don't you threaten me, woman."

With a laugh, Shelby took another bite. "Do you like the waffles?" she wondered. "I didn't know if I put too much chocolate-"

"Um, you of all people know that you can NEVER put too much chocolate. In anything."

"I meant for Rachel-"

"I'm sure Rachel will survive it. She'll love you forever."

"Well I'd hope she'd love me without the chocolate," she laughed. "But does she need it?"

Cass poked her side and smirked, taking Shelby's bite off of her fork and claiming it for her own. "Do you? Miss already-hyped-up-on-caffeine-might-as-well-add-some-more-sugar-to-it?"

Shelby spun around and grabbed at Cass's waist, "You know what?"

"What?" Cass challenged.

Without saying another word, Shelby reached behind her into the bag of flour she used to make the waffles and got some in her hand, holding it out in front of her before blowing it all over Cassie.

Things happened fast after that. Cass dropped her jaw with a gasp as she pushed Shelby back against the counter, reaching around her to get her own handful of flour to throw. It rose up into the air, falling down onto their heads like snow and showering their clothes in white powder. Shelby coughed and reached for the chocolate chips, making Cassie scoff.

"You're going to throw chocolate at me?! Ooh you monster, you. Bring it on."

Shelby laughed and threw the handful at her, Cassie catching half of them in her mouth.

"Mmm," she melted into Shelby's embrace and Shelby giggled trying to push her away.

"Get off of me, you fool," Shelby laughed, trying to pull away from her grasp. "I have strawberries I'll throw next."

"Do your worst," Cassie kissed Shelby with chocolate lips and Shelby swooned, tasting her with her tongue and kissing her back, passionately. Once they broke apart, Shelby eyed Cassie up and down and laughed.

"You might need another shower."

"_We_ might need another shower," Cass corrected her.

Shelby raised an eyebrow, mocking Cass from the day before. "Is this Cassandra July, suggesting second-shower sex?"

"You _are_ forward today," Cass noticed. "I was simply pointing out the fact that you, too, are covered in food."

"Mmmhmm," Shelby rolled her eyes. "Of course you were."

"I love you." Cassandra dead panned, basking in Shelby's beauty. Even covered in food, with her hair messed up and her mouth covered in chocolate, she looked like an angel.

"I love you too," Shelby whispered back, thinking quite the same thing about her chocolate-covered, flour-drenched beauty.

From the corner, Judy and Charles watched the whole exchange with small smiles.

"I might not have approved of it before," Charles said to her, quietly so Shelby and Cassandra wouldn't hear. "But they're so happy. Shelby is so happy. That's all we've ever wanted for her, isn't it?"

"I think," Judy nodded in agreement. "I'm actually starting to really love Cassandra. I hope her parents never hurt her again."

"Me too," Charles said. "They're going to make beautiful brides."

"You'll have to walk them both down the aisle," Judy told him.

He nodded. "I can do that."

Rachel had finally finished brushing her hair and getting dressed and washing her face and went out into the kitchen to find her mommies covered head to toe in food and laughing.

Judy and Charles decided it might not be a bad time to come out from their hiding spot as well. Rachel dropped her jaw at her mommies and Judy said with false shock,

"What in the world has happened here?"

Shelby immediately stiffened at the sound of her mother's voice. Cass held her tightly, protectively, a silent promise that nothing could hurt her.

"We um," Shelby stumbled over her words, for the first time that Cassandra had ever seen. Shelby knew her mother wasn't a fan of mess. "We'll clean it up fast, mother. We were just messing around-"

"Shelby, sweetheart," her mother shook her head. "You don't have to fear me. Or your father."

"I don't?" it was news to Shelby. Sure, they never beat her-not as much as Cassie was-but she was always trying her hardest for their approval. Because if they didn't approve Shelby felt like a failure and Shelby Corcoran absolutely LOATHED feeling like a failure.

"We saw what happened to Cassandra last night," Charles said softly. "Honey we're so sorry they were so cruel to you," he offered to Cassandra.

Surprised, but rolling with it, Cassandra nodded softly. The bruise on her face was pretty prominent now, but she had been choosing to ignore the pain. She didn't want the reminder of it. Of how her mother had beat her yet again.

"We want you to know that we're sorry," Judy said. "For making you feel like you have to be so perfect all of the time. We know that's how we raised you and that's who you'll be for the rest of your life. But know that you no longer have to work to please us." she flickered her gaze over to Cass and back to Shelby. "We're just happy that you're happy."

"Oh, Mom..." Shelby had tears welling in her eyes; she couldn't believe this was happening. She moved to hug Judy and Judy laughed. "Perhaps we can wait for the hug until you're all cleaned up?" she suggested. "We only have so many changes of clothing..."

Shelby smiled a small smile and backed up. "Oh. Right."

Judy sighed and rolled her eyes, pulling Shelby into her motherly embrace. "Oh, what the hell." and for one of the first times, this hug actually felt motherly.

. . .

Rachel was given a new art set, a new microphone stand (it was painted a shining gold) and a brand new pair of ballet, tap, and jazz shoes and she loved every second of all of it. She was spoiled, again, my Judy and Charles.

When Shelby's parents left the next day, everyone felt much differently than when they arrived. They didn't dread seeing each other the next time, they didn't worry about the years to come, and Shelby and Cassie didn't collectively sigh once they were out the door.

For once they all actually felt like family.

And it was more than anyone felt that they could ask for.


	33. Confront Your Fears, keeperofwords

**PLEASE READ THIS A/N IT'S IMPORTANT.**

**Okay, my lovelies. For this chapter, things were done a little differently than usual. Mostly in the aspect that I didn't write it.**

**Let me explain.**

**Okay, so the other day I got a PM from an amazing author/reader of mine named keeperofwords and we started talking about inspiration and writing and what-not, and she gave me an AMAZING prompt after I told her some personal reasons about why I write and what not and some things that I often struggle with so I write to keep myself sane and all that jazz.**

**Well after giving me the prompt she thought it might be fun to actually try writing it herself.**

**But I also wanted to give it at try.**

**So this chapter was written by her, and the next is the interpretation that I did of it.**

**PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE do not compare the two, or say which one you like better. Feel free to review as long as you don't do either one of those things.**

**Her version she considers a tribute to this series of Oneshots and I loved it so very much and decided that with her permission I simply HAD to post it. **

**Both of our versions are fairly different (which is why we didn't just put them into the same chapter) so we're deciding to leave it up to your imagination. Basically, they're alternate situations. It could have happened one way or the other, but not exactly both.**

**I'm hoping this will make more sense once you read them, so I'll let you do so.**

**With love always, Hayley**

* * *

**Written by: keeperofwords**

**Confront Your Fears, "Singer, Dancer, Little Star" Universe One Shot Tribute**

Rachel Corcoran tapped wildly on the keyboard of her laptop, as was her habit, getting her thoughts out before she went to bed. Rachel knew her moms were always there for her to talk to but this was so private she could barely admit it to herself, much less anybody else.

_I am going to do it tomorrow when Santana and I go to the mall. I am going to take her hand and walk to the food court past. I know Santana loves me. I love her too. I want to not keep it private anymore but I am scared. I figure it will be easier to show strangers first then maybe get the courage up to be Santana's girlfriend to my mothers. Santana looked hurt today when I dropped her hand while we sat together before Glee when Mr. Schuester walked by. I don't want to hurt her anymore. I don't want to hurt myself._

Rachel closed her computer, plugged her phone in to charge, and went to bed. Tomorrow would be hopefully the start of the rest of her life.

-o-

Rachel wiped her hands on her jeans. She was nervous and her hands were clammy. Santana was talking away to her, swinging her shopping bags in her hands as they walked to get some lunch.

"What time is your mama picking us back up?" Santana asked picking up her phone so she could text her mother what time Rachel's mother, Cassie, would be bringing her home.

"Mama is teaching through lunch and told me to meet her at 1:30 at the main doors," Rachel told Santana giving her a soft smile. Rachel always got lost in Santana's brown eyes. They gave her the confidence she needed right now.

Steeling herself, Rachel reached over and grabbed hold of Santana's elbow holding on it for dear life.

"Something wrong Rach?" Santana asked, finishing her text and pressing send. "You have not held that tight to my arm since we were in Kindergarten and we watched the Wizard of Oz for the first time. You cut off the circulation in my arm when the witch showed up."

Santana stopped in the middle of the mall and looked at her pointedly, "You have been acting weird since we got out of your mom's Range Rover."

Rachel gulped as she slid her hand down and let it connect with Santana's palm. She tentatively wrapped her whole hand around Santana's. Santana's hand was warm and soft and it felt wonderful.

"Is this ok?" Rachel asked tentatively, looking up into her girlfriend's eyes.

"More than ok, Rachel," Santana answered with a smile of approval. Santana adjusted her fingers so both girl's hands were laced. "Let's go get something to eat."

-0-

"Look over there Jason," Megan July rudely pointed at the two teenage girls sitting in at a corner table in front of a large picture window looking out at New York City. "That's the girl of the dyke Cassie is hooking up with."

Jason turned his head and looked curiously at the two girls. The Hispanic girl was feeding Rachel French Fries with one hand while wrapping an arm around Rachel's shoulders.

"That's sickening and should be against the law," Jason July added taking the last bite of his salad and putting the fork down. "I don't see our dyke daughter or her whore. The girl is out here alone."

"Well she needs to be better supervised. Someone needs to teach that girl what is appropriate and inappropriate behavior," Megan July stood up, pushing her tray of take-out away from her and weaving through the lunch crowd to the table of the young teenagers.

"Grams!" Rachel squeaked as a red-faced woman strode up to her and her girlfriend. Rachel had not seen Cassie's mom in at least 8 years. Since Cassie and Shelby had kicked her out. But she remembered. She remembered how she had hit her mama's face, and the ugly bruise that her mom could not totally cover with make-up.

"San, we need to get out of here. We need to leave now," Rachel pulled at her girlfriend's hand, looking for the closest exit or fire door. Rachel's mothers had taught her well enough to deal with situations of angry strangers that she knew she needed to get out of here now.

"What the hell, doll?" Santana stood up, surprised, grabbing up her drink cup and passively allowing herself to be pulled along. Rachel was pulling at her arm in a vice grip. The Hispanic teenager let her brown eyes travel the crowd. There was this older woman practically running in their direction. It was obvious to Santana that her girlfriend was trying to get away from her.

"Where is your mother? Does she know you are behaving like this?" Megan spat, clenching her jaws and narrowing her eyes.

"Who the hell are you?" Santana's temper surged when Rachel turned into her arms and pressed her face into the Santana's neck.

"She's nobody," Rachel whispered, trying to control her breathing. "Get me out of here."

"Does my daughter know you are here? Hasn't she taught you better manners than to behave like this?" Megan growled, shaking her finger at the two teenagers. "Dial Cassie's number Jason. Tell her how the daughter of the woman that she spreads her legs open for is behaving."

Santana Lopez fought the urge to hit this strange woman, who had her girlfriend in tears, in the face. Then her mother's words to walk away rung in her head. Also, Santana realized she was in a public place. If she hit this woman, she could very well get arrested and Rachel with her.

"Cassandra never picks up my calls. I had to leave a message," Jason told his wife, looking at the two teenagers disapprovingly. "I know teenagers have hormones but you both need to find boys. But I blame your mother and Cassie for this Rachel. They are not the best role models for you. They are living in sin. Nobody has taught you right and wrong or what love is."

"You don't know anything about love. You are hateful bigots," Rachel attacked in a loud voice at her Grams as each assessed each other's anger. Rachel looked Cassie's mom in the eyes defiantly.

A painful crack sent mall security running their direction as nearby shoppers pulled the older woman away from the two girls. Santana Lopez had two choices, fight and defend her girlfriend's honor or hold the petite brunette in her arms who was clutching at her like a baby.

Santana stroked Rachel's long brown hair as the two teenagers sat in the mall office. A paramedic was treating Rachel's face. It was one of the few times that Santana did not mind that her mom and Rachel's had been called.

-0-

Cassandra July was glad her curiosity got the better of her when she saw her father whom she had not spoken to in 8years called and left her a message on her cell phone. That had given the dance teacher time to change into a pair of jeans before first receiving a call from mall security and then getting a phone call from her sobbing daughter. Shelby had gotten a call from the police.

Now the couple were pulling open the glass doors opening into the mall with a sense of worry and trepidation.

"She is ok Cassie," Shelby told her lover, regarding their child. "The paramedics treated her at the scene and she did not need to go to the hospital. Calm down before we see our baby." Shelby picked up her lover's hand and kissed it.

"I can't believe my mother hit her. She hit Rachel," Cassandra spoke, emotionless still in shock of it all. "We have not seen my parents in years and then my mom turns up in the mall one day, sees our child, and hits her."

"Baby, Rachel is fine. Your mother is sitting in that police car in the mall parking lot. Let's get our daughter and take her home," Shelby gently told her partner tucking some blonde hair behind her ears before stroking her cheek.

With a nod Shelby and Cassie made their way to the mall office. The scene before them was unexpected but not so much that it shocked either woman. Rachel and Santana had been in each other's lives for years. But neither woman had realized _this_ level of intimacy the two teens obviously shared.

Rachel sat in Santana's lap with her head on Santana's shoulder. Santana was kissing the top of her head while patting Rachel's bare knee in a soothing manner.

"Rachel and Santana are..." Shelby started to stay then stopped herself as she thought about Megan July. "Your mother saw them together here and must have thrown a fit."

"I am going to go out to that police car and tell them we want a restraining order. I don't want Jason or Megan anywhere near our child," Cassie promised, starting to pull away only to be stopped by her wife.

"Your mother is not going anywhere. We'll go talk to our daughter first," Shelby spoke firmly, pulling Cassie by her belt loop before wrapping an arm around her waist. "It looks like Santana's mom is here too. Let's go get our baby."

-O-

Rachel found herself later that evening in her mother's bed. Both had patiently waited for her to talk. She had finally said she was ready but with the stipulation that they would hold her much like they used to when she used to come in their room after a bad dream like when she was a little girl.

With her mom spooned behind her holding her and with her mama on her side stroking her hair and holding her around the waist protectively, Rachel was ready to talk.

"I'm sorry I did not tell you that Santana was my girlfriend. I was scared," Rachel told her mother's, timidly finding comfort in how protectively they both held her.

"Why , Rach?" Shelby asked her daughter. She wanted to ask more but held her tongue. Shelby wanted Rachel to share what she wanted without prompting.

"I know you and mom are together. How you love each other. I mean you are meant to be together forever," Rachel gushed and told her mother's her opinion of their relationship with the innocent honesty of a child. "But," Rachel stopped and her voice died off.

"But?" Cassie prompted, pulling the sheet a little snuggly around her daughter.

"I know how they treat you. How they have always treated the two of you not only as a couple but as lesbians," Rachel sniffed as she spoke, "When I realized I liked Santana. I mean when I realized I really like, liked Santana; I had to decide if I was brave enough to not just admit I liked girls but show Santana I really liked her like she liked me." Rachel swallowed, glad when Shelby reached over to the bedside table and pulled out a tissue to wipe a single tear that was falling.

"Rachel, we of all people would understand if you were attracted to girls and not boys. We also love Santana. She has been in and out of our home doing things with us all for years," Shelby told Rachel, dabbing the tear away with the tissue.

"I know, but I wanted to show Santana first. She has been calling me her girlfriend for a month. She even told her mother so," Rachel told her moms. "Today was the first today I was brave enough to hold her hand. I was going to tell you tonight when you picked me up Mama," Rachel told Cassie looking at her. "I was going to tell you tonight at dinner Mom," Rachel told Shelby turning her head so she could look in Shelby's face.

"I understand Rachel and I understand your fear. Your mom and I both have not had the best experience with coming out to our parents. But we are not like your grandparents Rach," Cassie offered back showing she understood.

"We want you to know you can tell us anything," Shelby continued Cassie's thought.

"O k Mom, ok Mama, I will try to remember. I am glad you know. It felt so right when I took her hand in the mall today. I felt myself gush and melt all at once," Rachel admitted her voice getting stronger and less shy.

"I know the feeling Rachel. I felt similarly when your mama took my hand for the first time. I felt a warm rush flow through my body," Shelby told Rachel but looked at her lover. Cassie and Shelby intimately spoke to each other with their eyes.

"Then grams had to come and ruin it," Rachel admitted. "I tried to walk away, just like you taught me but she would not let me and then she said such hateful things and hit me. Why did she say those things and why did she treat me like that?"

"Rachel, my mother has got a lot of anger in her and she is very critical. When she gets emotional she lashes out both with words and sometimes her hands. It is wrong and I am so sorry she touched you," Cassie told her daughter bluntly.

"It's not your fault mama. It's hers and she did not make me feel any different about myself or Santana for that matter," Rachel admitted snuggling her back more into Shelby's front as she looked directly into her mama's eyes. Rachel smiled when she felt her mom kiss the top of her head. "You should have seen me mama. I looked right into her face, even though she was so angry and told her that she did not know about love."

"I am proud of you Rachel, very, very much," Cassie told her daughter. "You stood up to her at 15 years of age when it took me till adulthood to do so."

"We are really happy for you and Santana Rachel. She is a very sweet girl and pretty too," Shelby told her daughter. Rachel was growing up to o fast. It just seemed like she had brought home from the hospital and now Cassie, Rachel and herself were discussing Rachel's sexuality and how nice her girlfriend was.

"I love you mom," Rachel told Shelby. "I love you mama," Rachel then told Cassie. "Now I can get you to help me pick the perfect outfits when Santana and I go out on our dates. By the way, Can you drive her and me to the movies tomorrow night?"

"We will go as your chaperones. You mama and I want to have a talk with the two of you and how we expect you to behave now that you are girlfriend and girlfriend," Shelby told Rachel.

"Oh, mom, you are not going to embarrass me are you? And you are not going to go over where babies come from again right?" Rachel whined glad her mom's cared but not wanting to be embarrassed around Santana like she had been when Santana had accompanied her shopping for bras with her mother's one Saturday morning.

"Not like the bra shopping day Rach," Cassie seemed to know what Rachel was thinking. "Your mom and I will go easy on the embarrassment scale. I promise."

"If you are chaperones, does that mean you will pay for it so Santana or I don't have to use our allowance?" Rachel asked feeling a lot better since she had opened up.

"Yes, Rachel Barbara but not every time. Call Santana in the morning and we can ask her mom." Cassie agreed but knowing she needed to set a precedent that she was not funding all or the girl's dates. "But not every time. You girls are on your own after the movies. We however will be your designated drivers till you get your license."

Rachel was glad she faced her fears. She had come out the stronger for it.


	34. Confront Your Fears, hayleynymphadora

**Keeperofwords prompted: Rachel (13-15 years old) deals with her budding feelings of being attracted to women. Cassie's parents unexpectedly and by accident see her holding hands with Santana in the mall. Confrontation. Rachel is not out to Shelby or Cassie. Comes home and they talk about it.**

**A/N: A very special prompt from a very special reader who got me to open up a little bit about myself and explore another part of me that as a writer, and a fifteen year old girl, and a person struggling with certain feelings, I needed to channel. Thank you so much for this challenge. I know that I needed it and I sense that you knew that too, otherwise it wouldn't have been eating at your mind to send the prompt so much. xD Also I'm sorry I realize I never put the prompt on the last chapter. My mistake. It's here now. **

**Thanks again. I love you all!**

**With love, Hayley**

* * *

**Confront Your Fears, hayleynymphadora**

Rachel knew she was digging a deeper hole than she intended to, when she had turned fifteen and was still dating Jesse St. James. She loved Jesse, no doubt. But not in the way she knew he wanted her to, and it had nothing to do with him as a person so much as it had to do with the fact that he wasn't someone else. Someone she had been crushing on for years. Someone who was finally starting to actually reciprocate feelings back.

Someone she knew she shouldn't fall for.

Jesse laughed against her cheek and she forced a laugh back. It wasn't that it was hard to be around Jesse. He was one of her best friends.

It was that it was hard to pretend she liked him romantically like that.

But it felt better than facing her actual feelings. So she found herself trapped.

They were sitting on the couch in the living room at Rachel's house. Holding hands and talking.

Cassie and Shelby made their way out from the kitchen, spying the two and smiling. "Hey you two lovebirds," Shelby teased. "We're going shopping; can you think of anything we need, Rach?"

Rachel shook her head. A little too silently.

For someone so talkative, she knew she was being awfully quiet about things recently. Sooner or later Shelby or Cassie was bound to catch on and then she would have a lot of explaining to do. It wasn't that she didn't trust and love her mothers, it was just that she didn't want to start getting into all of these feelings she didn't think she was ready to deal with yet.

"We won't be gone long," Cass promised as she grabbed for the house keys hanging on the wall. "A couple hours or so."

"You have your phone charged?" Shelby double checked.

"Yeah, Mom,"

Rachel laughed somewhat nervously. "When don't I?" She spent most of her time texting Santana.

Shelby kissed her forehead and Cass gave her a hug.

"Stay out of trouble, Barbra." Cass glared at her, jokingly.

"No promises," Rachel smiled mischievously back, trying to act a little more like herself. Apparently she was a better actress than she had thought, because her mothers didn't seem to find anything suspicious about her behavior.

Jesse smiled up at Rachel's mothers. "I'll keep her safe." He promised. "I won't let her do anything she'll regret."

Rachel could feel her heart pounding. She was already doing something she regretted. However, Shelby admired Jesse, and trusted his word. Cassandra, on the other hand, trusted very few men , and Jesse St. James was no exception.

"Okay," Shelby smiled. "We're off."

"We love you," Cass added.

"Love you too." Rachel responded. Cass shut the door behind them.

. . .

"He's a nice kid," Shelby tried to convince Cassie while they were window shopping at one of their favorite clothing stores.

Cassandra scoffed. "Please, Shelby, spare me. He's a kiss ass teenage boy and there's only a slight doubt in my mind that he didn't start kissing all over our Little Star the second we shut the door." she scrunched her nose in disgust.

Shelby stopped looking at a sweater she was admiring and turned her attention to Cassie. "What's the slight doubt?" she asked softly. Cass pressed her lips together-she didn't care to bring it up. "What, are we going to just not talk about it?" Shelby followed Cass as she walked into the store and headed towards the shoes. "Pretend it's not happening?!"

With an eye roll, Cassandra sighed. How could her wife be so blind as to what Rachel was doing?! Didn't Shelby recognize what was happening? For god's sake, she was her Mama's daughter.

"Babe, I'm not saying he isn't a good kid. He just isn't right for Rachel."

"That's what you said about Finn!" Shelby reminded her. "And that Puck kid."

"That Puck kid..." Cass mumbled with a laugh. "You KNOW he was trouble."

Shelby widened her eyes in confusion. Where the hell was all of this coming from? "Cassie?" she wondered. "What am I missing?"

Cassandra stopped what she was doing and looked Shelby in the eyes. Those dazzling, gorgeous, lost Emerald green eyes. "Shelby, baby, maybe you're right. We haven't talked enough about this and we need to address it. But not here. Let's go get a coffee."

Nodding in agreement, Shelby followed C assie out of the store and to a nearby Cafe'. They sat face to face and Shelby took Cassie's hands across the table, regardless of the fact that they were out in public. "Talk to me," her voice was low, with a tone implying a beg.

Taking a breath, Cass started. "Do you remember, when Rachel was like 12 or 13 and had that crush on Santana? How Santana was her first kiss?"

Shelby bit her lip (something Cass always found extremely endearing). She had a feeling that's what this was all about. Santana. "You think she's using these boys as beards." she deadpanned.

"In all honesty?" Cassandra shrugged. "Yeah, I do. You know I did the same thing in college when I was afraid of my crush on you."

"Well, Santana being her first kiss doesn't necessarily mean that Santana is and was her crush-"

"It's Santana." Cass was sure of it and Shelby knew she couldn't argue. The two just had that chemistry. The crush was there for both of them. Both were clearly crushing on one another.

"So you think that in terms of us, Santana is Rachel's...Shelby?" She was starting to understand.

"Exactly, Shelbs. I'm worried about her with these boys. I went to great lengths with the guys I was with to prove to myself that I wasn't gay-that I didn't like you. That I didn't have any feelings for you." Cass tried to get her point across without forcing Shelby to listen to the gory details and hoped that what she said was all it would take.

Shelby's eyes widened. "O-Oh! You think-you don't think she's been having sex with them do you?!"

After a long sip of coffee Cassie answered. "For her sake, I hope to god she isn't. It's good that we also talked about boys in that sex talk we had with her..."

"Oh, Cassie," Shelby whispered. "Deep down I think I know all of this. I just-if Rachel didn't want us to believe that she likes Santana-I was trying to give her the benefit of the doubt."

"I know," Cass said softly, shaking her head. "I know, so was I. But she's been with Jesse for like 4 months now. Shelby I think it's about time we intervene before she ends up pregnant. Or worse."

Shelby opened her mouth to protest but Cassie cut her off and kept going.

"She doesn't know what she's doing, Shelby. It's a really hard road to go down-I would know, I've been there. She NEEDS us to interfere. I wish someone would've been there to talk some sense into me so I could've dated your sexy little ass a little sooner. People are going to end up hurt if she doesn't stop and come to her senses."

Shelby blushed lightly when Cass referred to her ass as sexy. And little.

"Why do you think," Shelby started slowly. "Our daughter won't come out to her lesbian parents? Is she afraid we won't accept it? That's ridiculous."

Cassandra shook her head. "It has to be other people she's afraid of. Or just the idea of it, maybe. And the more people know...'

"She doesn't trust us?"

"It's not a trust thing that's stopping her, babe-it's the fear. Shelby, you must remember what it's like."

Shelby finished her coffee. "Of course I remember." There was a pause after which she said, "What are we going to do? Talk to her about it tonight? How do we even begin a conversation about this? We don't want her to feel like she's being cornered..."

Chewing her lip in contemplation, Cassandra replied. "I don't know, Shelbs." she smiled softly and squeezed Shelby's hand, smiling hopefully. "We'll figure it out. Rachel will be okay. She's a smart girl."

. . .

Rachel and Jesse kissed and Rachel knew this wasn't how it was supposed to feel-forced, awkward. She closed her eyes and kissed him again.

Think of Santana. She told herself. Pretend it's her lips you're kissing. And she tried, but no matter how many times she told herself that, Jesse's lips didn't taste like Santana's. He didn't kiss her the same way she had, and his touch wasn't the same.

It was in that moment that even if she didn't want to deal with attracted-to-girls emotions, she realized how badly she would rather be kissing Santana. It wasn't that Jesse was a bad kisser. It was that he was a boy-Rachel loved him like a best friend; a brother.

And he wasn't Santana.

"Jesse," she broke away. What was she going to say? I'm just not that into you? They'd been together for 4 months! "I'm gay." she blurted. Well she hadn't meant for it to come out like that.

Jesse smiled softly. Not the reaction she had been expecting. "I know," he answered. "Me too."

"I'm so-" Rachel stopped in the middle of her apology and raised an eyebrow. "Wait, what?!" out of all the reactions she had been expecting...

"Guess we were sort of each others' safety net, huh?" he asked sort of sheepishly.

"How..."

"How did I know?' he finished for her. She nodded-her heart raced even though she felt comfortable talking about it with Jesse. "It's Santana, isn't it?"

She nodded, her hands starting to sweat nervously.

"Am I that obvious?" she worried.

Jesse shook his head. "I'm just good at noticing things. But you're safe with me, Rachel. I promise. I'll continue to be your cover up, or I'll support you being with Santana. Whatever you decide to do, I'm here for you. I've got your back."

Rachel hugged him tightly and he hugged her back. "I love you," she cried. "You're my best friend." she sniffed, pulling back and looking at him. "With the exception of Kurt and Santana, of course." she smiled a little half smile.

"Of course," he laughed and smiled back, wiping her tears with his sleeve. "Don't cry, Rach." he told her. "It'll be okay."

"Oh, Jesse," she set her head on Jesse's chest and he held her. "I don't know what to do."

"I can't tell you what to do with your life, Rach." he said sadly.

"I'm so scared." she whispered.

"Maybe you should talk to your moms." he suggested, pushing a piece of hair out of her face.

She nodded. "I know. I know I should."

"It'd be a good first step." he agreed.

"I will when they get home tonight." she decided.

Before they could discuss it any more, Rachel's phone beeped.

It was a text from Santana. She read it.

**Hey you ;) you hanging out with Jesse? Wanna come chill at the mall with me and Kurt?**

Rachel looked up from her phone with a small smile. Her stomach felt giddy every time Santana texted her. That winky face made her blush. Jesse laughed. "Is it from Santana?" he asked.

Rachel nodded. "Feel like going to the mall for a while?"

Jesse nodded back. "Sure. Text your moms."

"I will, father." she joked, writing to Cassie. **San and Kurt want Jesse and I to hang out at the mall. Can we?**

Cass checked her phone immediately when she found out it was Rach.

"They want to go to the mall...? she asked Shelby.

"With San and Kurt at least?" Shelby pleaded they weren't going alone.

"Yes," Cass confirmed.

"Back by eight," Shelby instructed.

"I'll be sure to pass the message along."

. . .

Once they were dropped off at the mall by Kurt's dad, Rachel practically ran into Santana's arms. "Oh, San," she whispered into her ear.

Santana wasn't sure what was going on, but she ran her hand down the length of the back of Rachel's head, her fingers intertwining in her chocolate brown locks. "What's wrong, Rach?" she wondered.

"I really really like you." Rach admitted into her ear. " Like more than just friends. Like I want to hold your hand and kiss you and love you forever kind of like. And I can't hide from those feelings anymore, San. I 'm sick of hiding and the secrets and the feelings. I'm sick of fighting. I don't want to date Jesse or Finn or any of those other boys I just want to be with you."

"Oh, Rachel," Santana whispered back, giving the girl a sweet kiss on the cheek. "I feel the same way."

Kurt raised his eyebrows and clapped happily at the exchange. "Finally," he grinned.

"Right?' Jesse smiled back.

Rachel and Santana pulled back from their hug and took a moment to just take the moment in. To just look at each other.

"I want to hold your hand," Rachel admitted shyly.

"Well it's right here, totally ready for you to take and never let go of." Santana giggled, holding it out to Rachel.

Rachel looked around. "In public? Aren't you afraid of the looks? The whispers?"

"It doesn't matter what they think," Jesse told her bravely, even though he worried about the same thing a lot of the time. "Kurt and I can walk in front of you, if that makes you feel better."

"I'm proud to like Santana," Rachel said. "It's just-"

"I get it, sweetie," Santana told her. "Honest. Just ignore them. Screw them."

"Okay." Rachel took her hand. It was so warm, and loving, and soft. So much better than holding anyone else's hand. It felt like home. She finally felt safe.

If only that safety could've lasted forever.

It was an hour or so later, while they were walking-Rachel and Santana hand in hand, with Rachel's head on her should, and Kurt and Jesse walking protectively in front of them-towards the food court for smoothies, that things started to go awry.

. . .

Megan smacked Jason's arm lightly and murmured, "Did you see that girl walk by? That's Shelby's daughter."

"Shelby?" Jason had already happily forgotten the name.

"Cassie's lezzie bitch." she spat. "I'm positive that was Rachel. Holding hands with some Latina girl. How disgusting. We have to go talk some sense into her."

"Disgusting,"

They stood up and started following the group of friends.

"Rachel Corcoran!"

Rachel heard her name being yelled and turned around, terrified, snapping her neck around to see Cassie's mother and father storming towards her. How horribly coincidental that she would see them now, on the day she decided to hold Santana's hand, after at least 7 years of not seeing them.

"We have to run," Rachel said quickly to her group. Everyone had stopped when they heard Rachel's name being yelled.

"Who is that?" Jesse asked.

"Mama's mom,"

"The one that beat her?!" Kurt started pulling Rachel forward and Santana and Jesse ran to catch up.

"That's her."

It all came in flashes; Cassie's bruised face. The one that took weeks to heal.

How scared her mama always was to see her parents.

"RACHEL BARBRA CORCORAN." she stopped dead in her tracks.

"What are you doing, Diva?!" Kurt asked through his teeth.

"She's not going to leave," Rachel realized. "I have to just let her hit me and get it out of her system."

Santana raised her eyebrows. "She CANNOT hit you. She can't put a hand on you."

"But she will," Rachel whispered in sheer trepidation. Just before Megan and Jason caught up to her, she called Cassie's cell and turned down her speaker so she couldn't hear Cass answer.

...

Cass answered her phone. "Hello? Rachel. Is something wrong?"

But then she listened. She stopped in her tracks and she listened to what was going on and her face turned pale white. She turned her attention to Shelby, whose stomach flipped at the look on Cassandra's face.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

Cass put the phone on speaker. "How far are we from the mall?" She growled.

"A couple blocks, what's wrong with Rachel?!"

"We have to run." Cass grabbed Shelby's hand and pulled her with her.

. . .

"YOU. Your mothers are SO horrible to influence you in this way. Your Mom, the little slut that she is, convinced Cassie into a life of sin just like herself and now you're following her lead well I can't say I'm surprised." Megan spit to Rachel.

Rachel squeezed Santana's hand tighter and Santana said very loudly, as Santana usually did,

"Excuse you? Who do you think you are?"

"Shut up you little dyke this doesn't concern you."

"Don't call her that!" Jesse defended.

"I'm here to talk to Rachel. You CANNOT follow in Cassie's footsteps. She's BRAINWASHED you."

"SHE DOESN'T EVEN KNOW!" Rachel nearly burst into tears but didn't have time to because Megan cursed,

"The HELL she doesn't," and smacked Rachel, hard, in the face.

Santana gasped and caught Rachel before she fell to the ground. Rachel cried into Santana's neck, her face already starting to bruise.

A mall guard saw everything and dragged Megan away from Rachel; though Jason hadn't done anything in particular to Rachel besides stand by and encourage his wife, he was taken away from her as well.

Rachel reached, weakly, for her phone in her pocket and handed it to Kurt, turning the speaker back up. "Mama's on the phone," she whispered.

"Hello, Cassandra?" Kurt said into the phone. "Your mom just hit Rachel. I really think you should come meet us here, she's losing her shit."

"We're walking through the door now." Cass informed him. "Where are you?"

"Food court. I'll see you in a sec,"

"Bye."

Quickly, Cass and Shelby made their way to their sobbing daughter. They double blinked for a second, at the sight of Santana caressing her and trying to calm her down. Cass shot Shelby a knowing look, and they both were at Rachel's side quickly.

"Rachel, baby I am so sorry." Cassie whispered to her, pulling her into a hug. Rachel buried her face in her Mama's chest. "I am so so so sorry. We'll get a restraining order, she'll never see you again,she'll never touch you again, I promise." A tear slid down Cassie's cheek, remembering all those years she was beaten by her mother and father. She couldn't believe her mom had gone as far as to hit Rachel. She pulled Rachel's head back and examined her face.

"How bad is it, baby girl?" she asked.

"It stings. But her words hurt more."

"Oh, Rachel," Shelby joined their hug. "She won't touch you baby. I swear. We'll get ice on it. We'll go home and talk." she turned and looked at Jesse and Santana and Kurt. "She'll text you later, okay? We need to get her home and talk."

"Did I..." Santana had tears swimming in her worried brown eyes. "I didn't mean to get her in trouble. I didn't want her to get hurt."

Shelby pulled Santana into a hug, too. "You didn't, sweetheart. It's Megan's fault, not yours. You've done absolutely nothing wrong." she tried to convince her.

Jesse piped up, "Shelby, she called Santana a dyke." his voice was angry.

Shelby kissed Santana's forehead. "You are not. Don't let people's words get to you, Santana Marie. We love you. You can come over later tonight, okay? We need to set some rules if you're going to be with Rachel."

Santana nodded softly.

Cass had Rachel at her side. "Do you kids want a ride home?" she asked.

"My dad's on his way," Kurt informed her.

"We love you," Cass told the three of them.

They got a collection of "We love you too"s and then Cassie and Shelby (after talking to the police about getting a restraining order. Cass would have to go into the station later on in the week) walked Rachel back to the apartment.

Once they had her settled down and on the couch, a mom on either side of her, she was ready to tell them what had been going on.

"I thought dating Jesse would make people think I was normal."

"Sweetheart, you are normal," Shelby promised her. "There is nothing wrong with liking Santana."

"I was scared." Rachel whispered. "Of people like Mama's mom. But then today I decided to tell Jesse I couldn't do it anymore. I was kissing him and picturing Santana and I knew I had to stop kidding myself. I wanted San's touch not his." she blushed upon revealing this information. "And so I blurted that I was gay and he said "I know so am I" and reminded me that the first step in doing better with accepting this is talking to you two. Then San invited us to the mall and I told her how I felt and she said she felt the same so I took her hand. And I was fine with the looks and the stares and the whispers. Until your mom showed up and called her a dyke, and..well you heard all of it."

"Rachel," Cassie started slowly. "You don't have to try to convince yourself to be something your'e not."

"How would you know?" Rachel had to ask, it was killing her.

"Because I did the exact same thing when I fell for Shelby. I was scared. I dated a bunch of guys to make her jealous and tell myself that it was just a phase, that I didn't want her. But that didn't work. All it did was make things harder. I, like you, got sick of fighting. I wanted the love of my life. When you're in love with a woman...it doesn't meant that the whispers and looks and stares will hurt any less. It just gets easier to ignore when you have her by your side. Does that make sense? And you are perfect. You are amazing. Just the way you are." Cass hugged her tightly.

"We love you so much and we are so proud of you," Shelby hugged her as well and Rachel found herself in a Mama/Mommy sandwich.

"I love you too." Rachel wiped her final tear. "So much."

She knew it was going to take a while to get used to, the feelings she had for Santana. But now that her mothers knew, that Jesse knew, that Kurt and Santana knew, she had a support group.

She had stayed and let Megan hit her because she knew she couldn't change how people felt about it.

But for once in her life, in this situation, she felt so brave. So safe. So protected.

She felt okay.

And okay was better than the horrible she had been feeling.


	35. Brainstorm

**Me: Cassie/Holly/Rachel proposal ideas. Some pre-proposal fluff and randomness. Shelby gets thrown into the mix as well eventually...hard to explain, just read xD**

**This was me in a fluffy mood, throwing in-between chapters in there and vying for time while I think about how I'm going to do the proposal and the wedding.**

**Thanks to some help from my dad (that sounded so nerdy, please try not to laugh at my writers block. Didn't have peanuts to eat given we were eating dinner...lol.) I think I know exactly how I'm going to do the proposal, now I just have to work out writing it.**

**The wedding is still a work in progress. A HUGE work in progress.**

**Review and prompt for me! I love you all and what do you think of the fluffiness? **

**Love always, Hayley**

* * *

**Brainstorm**

Shelby was in the kitchen, catching up on grading assignments on her laptop up at the counter. Based on her dead set expression, everyone just assumed that she was not to be disturbed. It was a perfect time for Cassie to start brainstorming ideas for her promised "bad ass" proposal-which she still had no idea how to go about.

"Why did I have to promise a BAD ASS proposal?!" Cassie complained to Holly in the living room.

She, Holly, and Rachel were all sitting in separate chairs-each had their own notebook and pen. Rachel had nominated herself the official "proposal ideas coordinator" and thus was wearing a pair of Shelby's reading glasses. She thought they made her look all professional and scholarly. Cassie and Holly thought it was just too damn cute. In fact, Aunt Holly had already snapped a picture of Rachel wearing them and, with Cassie's permission, had posted it to Facebook, captioning it, "Getting down to business-this is where things get serious". It had 70 likes within 5 minutes.

"You were caught up in the heroic moment!" Holly defended for her. "You were her knight in shining armor."

Cassie sighed. "You see this is why you don't propose before proposing!" she threw her hands up in the air.

"Yeah, sort of defeats the purpose, huh?" Holly said thoughtfully. Cassie shot her a glare, which was ignored as Holly continued.

"It's not like you don't know if she's going to say yes-"

"What if she doesn't?" Cassie wondered. She didn't have to fear Shelby overhearing them-the brunette was a room away with headphones in. "You know we fear commitment."

Holly rolled her eyes at Cassandra's dramatics. "You've been together for 10 years, I'd say you're pretty committed. Don't you start getting soft on me." she warned.

Sighing once more, Cass knew her best friend was right. Then a thought occurred to her. "Whose maid of honor ate you?" she asked, worriedly. "I totally call dibs! You have to be mine!"

Pressing her lips together, Holly clapped her hands. "Rachel, how about some ideas?"

"Holly?!" Cass panicked.

"Rachel! Ideas!" Holly rushed.

Cass pouted and crossed her arms.

"Be Mommy's knight in shining armor!" Rachel suggested. "Ride in on a horse!"

"So I can fall off of it and embarrass all of us?" Cass scoffed.

"It's an idea, we're putting it down." Holly defended.

Reluctantly, Cassie wrote it and put an X next to it. For absolutely not. It was a cute idea, but not one that Cassie could accomplish and she knew this.

"Flash mob!" Holly pointed at Cass for no particular reason.

"Cliché'!" Cassandra pointed back.

"List!" Rachel piped up, pushing the glasses back up her face. They all wrote it down.

"Romantic dinner?" Holly thought.

"I can't cook! We wouldn't make it to the wedding; even if we survived the house fire, the damage would cost too much." Cass wrote dinner down then drew a line straight through it. After a minute she thought, "I can sing to her."

"Yes!" Rachel fist bumped the air. "Brilliant!"

"It's a definite maybe," Holly tilted her head in approval.

"You and your oxymorons." Cass rolled her eyes.

"Mommy loves flowers," Rachel suggested.

"I'm sure I'll do that anyways, hun." Cass smiled at her daughter. Rachel shrugged.

"Parachute out of the sky, holding the ring." Holly beamed.

Ah, the ring. Yet another thing on Cassandra's agenda.

"I said bad ass, not suicidal." Cass took a deep breath. "Ugh. I need tea."

"Me too?" Holly asked with a smile on her face.

"Maid of Honor?" Cass dead panned.

"I will not decide without consulting Shelby." Holly informed her.

Pursing her lips, Cass raised an eyebrow. "Will flattery and getting you things help at all?" Cass hoped.

"Not one bit." Holly shook her head.

"Hmm." Cass stood and stretched. "Well then guess who's not getting any tea?"

She would've gotten flipped off, if Rachel wasn't right there.

"You better hope Mommy doesn't see those." Rach said, pointing to the idea list on the chair where Cass had just been sitting.

"Right," Cass tossed the notebook to Rachel. "Good thinking, Barbra. Guard it with your life."

"Yes Mama." Rachel saluted her.

After Cass saluted back, she headed to the kitchen. As she passed by Shelby, she gave her lover's neck a quick but slightly lingering and very hot kiss. Shelby lost focus completely when she felt Cassandra's extremely soft and distracting lips on the most sensitive parts of her neck. She squirmed in her chair and took her headphones out.

"Well hello to you, too." she gasped out. Cass kissed Shelby's cheek with a smile and headed towards the cupboard, getting a cup down, filling it with water, and putting it in the microwave. No one trusted her with the stove.

As she got out a tea bag she heard Shelby complain, "You little tease, get back here! You can't turn me on then walk away!"

With a light laugh, Cass did a dramatic spin, turning herself around to face Shelby with a seductive little smile. She walked very slowly towards Shelby until they were nose to nose, but Cassandra would only let their noses touch, nothing else.

Shelby nudged her chin forward to try to lock lips with her but she moved back.

"Mmm mmm." she hummed disapprovingly. "I think I just did." she whispered.

"Did what," Shelby breathed out, wanting so badly for Cass to just kiss her or touch her in some way. She wanted the contact and she knew Cass wasn't going to give it to her.

"Turned you on, then walked away."

The microwave beeped and Cass smirked wickedly, spinning around to go make her tea. But Shelby would have none of that. She reached out and grabbed the waist line of Cassandra's jeans, dragging her back towards her, and spinning her around, their hips crashing against each other. A wave of pleasure shivered through Shelby's body and Cass hummed in approval.

"I don't think so," Shelby grinned and kissed Cassie, their smiles touching. Shelby pulled back just enough to say,

"What are you and Rach and Holly doing in the living room, anyways?"

"Mmm THAT is something we're not going to talk about."

"Proposal ideas?" Shelby wondered, raising an eyebrow.

Cass's heart shook in her chest. Did Shelby hear more than Cass thought she could? Could she keep nothing secret?

She breathed out shakily. "Am I so obvious?" she wondered nervously.

"No, baby. A little predictable, maybe."

In mock hurt, Cass put her hand to her chest. "I am not predictable!" she defended.

Shelby laughed.

"You can't hear us out there, can you?" Cass wondered.

Shelby shook her head and Cass sighed. "You wouldn't tell me if you could! Can you please just let me surprise you with this? I know you don't like surprises, but please? Please."

"Mmm. Maybe," Shelby sighed, wrapping her arms around Cassie and slipping her hands down into the back pockets of her jeans. "Are you going to keep begging me like that?" she whispered.

"I don't beg," Cass whispered back, her voice low and sultry.

"We'll see about that," Shelby said, licking her lips.

And Shelby called CASSIE a tease.

"And I'm not predictable," Cass said with a wink. She quickly, before Shelby could catch on and stop her, swooped her arms underneath Shelby and swept her up off of the floor and into her arms. "HIDE THE LISTS, RACHEL!" she yelled into the living room.

Shelby giggled. "Cassie," she held tight to Cassie's arm. "What are you doing?! Put me down!"

"Admit that I'm not predictable!" Cass started walking towards the living room.

Shelby reached out and grabbed the door frame, holding on for dear life. "Neverrr!" she squealed. Cass pulled on her until she reached for Cassie's neck again and Holly and Rachel watched, curious and starting to laugh at Cass and Shelby's games.

"Admit it!" Cassie laughed, throwing Shelby down onto the couch and straddling her, tickling her sides and making her kick underneath her.

"NO! Stop it CASSIEEEEEEE!" Shelby turned from side to side and tried to get out of Cassie's grasp.

Cass kissed her cheeks and tickled her some more. "You'd better admit it, Shelby. This is tiring you out more than it is me. Say I'm not predictable! And be honest!"

"I can't do BOTH!" Shelby teased, kicking her legs.

"Help me!" Cass said to Holly and Rachel through her teeth.

Holly laughed and rolled her eyes, holding Shelby's legs down. Rachel held her arms down and Cassie continued tickling her.

"Shelby Kimberly Corcoran," she warned, reaching to tickle Shelby's stomach-her weakness.

"NO!" Shelby laughed, her eyes widening. "DON'T YOU DARE!"

"SAY IT!" Cassie giggled back.

"You're not predictable!" Shelby yelled, smiling hugely. "Now get off of me you fool!"

With a final little laugh, Cass kissed Shelby's lips lightly and Shelby kissed her back. Holly and Rachel let go.

"Finish your work, Shelbs," Cass laughed.

"Hurry up and propose to me, Cassie," Shelby looked intimately into Cassandra's eyes and Cassie whispered,

"I will."


	36. Welcome to NYADA, Pt4

**CoolMusic: Can we get the full "Corcoran, get back here." scene?**

**Of course, here you are! Thank you for this prompt.**

**It was actually admittedly a hard chapter to write. Very emotional. But it was very necessary and very powerful and I still enjoyed writing it. Thanks again and I hope you all like it!**

**With love always, Hayley**

* * *

**Welcome to NYADA Pt.4**

Shelby sat cross legged on her bed, her math book opened across her. She growled as she typed into her calculator and got another wrong answer. When she was younger, everyone always made fun of her for being the best at everything. However, math was definitely not her forte.

Cass walked out of the bathroom, having just done her make up, in an admittedly very sexy outfit, ready for her date with the guy she'd been hooking up with, Justin.

Boiling with jealousy, (Shelby had been looking up at Cassie) Shelby turned her attention back to her homework, struggling and erasing and blowing the eraser pieces off of her book to start again.

"Don't wait up," Cassie joked with a wink.

Shelby looked up again and her breath left her. Cass was standing much closer than she was last time she had been looking up. Cass saw a look of discomfort on Shelby's face. Her own heart was racing, knowing what she was doing, but she didn't stop.

"You think it's too much?" she motioned to her outfit.

"Is your objective to get laid?" Shelby asked slightly bitterly, raising an eyebrow and looking back down at her book, trying to focus on the problem. The numbers and letters swirled in her mind; her rage had unfocused her.

A smirk spread across Cassandra's lips at how jealous Shelby was. Maybe that meant she'd make the first move.

No, Cassandra, dammit, you don't want her to make a move. You aren't attracted to her, you're attracted to Justin.

Was she? Or was tonight going to be a total waste of time?

Probably the latter, but damned if she wouldn't try anyways.

"Perhaps." she responded.

"Well then I think your outfit is perfect. Justin will love it."

"Do you?" Cass asked, taking herself AND Shelby off guard. The brunette's eyes widened and she turned her attention away from her book. It wasn't as if she was accomplishing anything anyways.

"Do I what?" she asked, staring blankly at Cassie, trying to look expressionless. She succeeded, though her heart was breaking.

Why did Cassie chose these guys over her?

True, Shelby had never intentionally showed a desire to be with Cassandra in any way, but it was only out of fear. She knew it was her fault that Cassie was available TO be going out with Justin.

"Do you like it?" For once in her life, Cassandra swore she was blushing while talking to a girl. She actually, surprising herself, hoped Shelby was going to say yes.

Shelby blinked a few times, flustered and unsure how to respond. What could she say that wouldn't make her sound too into Cassandra? Finally she said, in a low voice, very sincerely, "You look very beautiful." before shoving her books to the side, getting up off of her bed and going into the bathroom, locking the door behind her.

Cassandra felt horrible and wonderful all at once. Shelby had called her beautiful, but the poor girl looked so upset and Cassie knew that was probably her fault. She knew she was a horrible person.

But she also knew that a relationship with Shelby would just end poorly-she would just end up hurting Shelby.

And she was admittedly very afraid.

Afraid of the looks and the sneers and the talks. Afraid of what her parents would do if they found out (they had beaten her profusely when she thought she could be gay when she was in high school).

So with a sigh, she fixed her short black leather skirt and called, "Don't wait up."

Shelby responded, her voice nearly cracking, "Why would I?"

Pressing her lips together, Cassie left for her date, leaving Shelby jealous, furious, and scared of what she was feeling.

Leaving her alone with her emotions.

Leaving her trapped.

. . .

She stared at herself in the mirror.

"Get your shit together, Shelby Corcoran." she told herself forcefully. "You don't want her. She was never yours so you don't have a right to be jealous. You're not going to make a move because she doesn't want you. Are those tears glistening in your eyes? Get them out. No. Push the feelings away. Get over yourself. Now."

She sniffed and wiped her eyes and looked back at her reflection.

"You are independent. You are strong. You don't want her. You don't need her. Go out and finish your homework."

With a deep breath, she collected herself, left the bathroom, and returned to her books, throwing herself angrily into her studies.

Why did her emotions always try to get the best of her?

They were HER emotions, they shouldn't be allowed to control her or her body like that.

She told herself, as she looked at the clock five hours later and Cassandra wasn't back, that she didn't care how late Cass stayed out.

But she did. She so did.

. . .

After an admittedly very sweet dinner with Justin, he brought her back to his dorm. His roommate was out for the night.

He smiled at her and she smiled back.

He was a good person. She felt bad for using him to figure out her feelings. Or, at least, to hide her true feelings. She was trying to convince herself that she felt something for this guy.

But when he took his shirt off and she looked at him-he was handsome, no doubt, but it didn't turn her on like she thought it should have. He pulled her close with a small smile and she fell on top of him on his bed but that rush of electricity she was trying to make herself feel...she just couldn't feel it.

But she could tell that he did.

She let him take off her shirt and her pants and flip her over.

The moment was lost to Cassandra as she closed her eyes and tried so desperately to feel SOMETHING. Anything.

She knew it wasn't just this guy she didn't feel something for. He was guy number four she had gone out with to try to convince herself that her feelings, that her heart, didn't already belong to Shelby.

He kissed at her neck and said, "Say my name,"

"Justin," she tried to sound seductive. It must of worked. He worked hard and fast against her. She kept her eyes closed and tried her hardest not to make a sound. A gasp of pain shot out of her mouth and he thought it was a gasp of excitement.

All the better, she assumed.

Just think about Shelby, she told herself. About the way she laughs. About how strong she is. How she doesn't let anything get to her. About how her confidence and brilliance turns you on. About how you wish so desperately that just one of these nights she would change in front of you. Or sleep in your bed with you. Or sleep with you in general.

No, STOP IT. You don't want Shelby.

Justin made some unintelligible noise against her and she sighed.

Yes, you do. You do want Shelby. You want HER to be the one on top of you, kissing you, slowly. Teasing you. Caressing you. Kissing you to make it all better. Taking things slow to make sure she's not hurting you. Cuddling you afterwards.

"Mmm, Shelby," She breathed out, her heart slamming up against her chest. Her eyes shot open, terrified. She realized what she had just done.

Justin had already slowed against her though. At this point he had just been kissing her and cooling off.

He stopped immediately. "Who the hell is Shelby?!" he demanded. "You're thinking about some chick to get off?!"

"No," Cass got her courage and pushed him off of her, quickly dressing, her face red. "No, I didn't say Shelby, what the hell are you talking about?!"

"Then what did you say?!"

She couldn't think of anything fast enough.

"I-uh..."

"Go fuck Shelby then. I don't want to see you again."

Cass felt horrible. She hadn't meant to hurt him. "Justin-"

"GO."

She left, hurriedly, and made her walk of shame back to her dorm room, thankful at least that she would have Shelby there with her. Even if Shelby was mad at her. She wasn't Justin. And she was there with her. And she wouldn't be alone.

She got back to the dorm and threw her key onto her bed and took a deep breath and shut the door. Shelby was listening to her iPod on her bed. She looked over at Cass and took an ear bud out.

"I take it your date went well?" she asked, clearly still frustrated.

Cassie rolled her eyes. All she had wanted while she was with Justin was to be with Shelby and now that she was with Shelby she wanted out. Because damn the woman could be so condescending and it turned Cass on more than she had expected it would.

"Went just peachy," Cass said back, taking her hair down out of it's bun and turning around to see that Shelby had stood up, crossed her arms over her chest, rolled her eyes, and started to walk out the door.

"Corcoran, get back here," Cassie sighed, taking Shelby's arm lightly before she could leave.

Shelby spun around, shocked, still holding the door open. She stared, quizzically into Cassandra's deep, stunning eyes. She could sense that her date had clearly been anything but peachy. She could tell that Cassandra was going through a really rough time and all she wanted to do was fix it and make it better so that she wouldn't hurt anymore.

Cass's breathing was heavy and she stepped closer to Shelby and Shelby's head started spinning. She stepped closer as well and her emotions took over. She reached her arms out and wrapped them around Cassandra, pulling the blonde close and pressing their lips together.

Cassandra moaned at the sudden contact, sending shivers down Shelby's spine. She let her tongue explore Cassandra's bottom lip and Cass pushed Shelby lightly backwards, shutting the door in the process. Shelby jumped up and wrapped her legs around Cassandra, her body throbbing, begging for more.

Breaking away from the kiss for a breath, Cass placed a sweet, seductive kiss on Shelby's jaw, her neck, her chin, her lips.

And then she realized what was happening and broke away, picking Shelby up and setting her back down on the floor, spinning herself around and putting her hand to her mouth.

Sweet Jesus what have I done?!

"I can't believe we just did that."

"Should I not have?" Shelby asked, worried, heart broken, but also feeling the after wave of the kiss rush through her. It had felt so good. And how badly she had wanted to feel that touch...but had Cassandra not wanted the same thing? Then why did she kiss back?

"It was very VERY hot," Cass admitted, catching her breath. She turned around and looked at Shelby, feeling horrible. "But it can't happen again."

"But why-"

"It just..can't. I don't want to hurt you, Shelby."

"You're hurting me now!" she insisted. "Tell me you don't feel something for me too!" she challenged.

"I can't tell you that. I'd be lying," Cass gave a small little half smile. "But I'm damaged, Shelby and if we start something...it'll just hurt you more. I'm sorry."

And with that she locked herself in the bathroom until she knew that Shelby was asleep.


	37. Baby Food

**A quick little thing I wrote last night to tide you over until I figure out the proposal. And so you know, I AM working out the proposal xD Just slowly but steadily. So most likely any chapters posted before said "bad ass" proposal will be short. **

**Thanks to keeperofwords for chatting with me late at night and in the middle of the day about writing and giving me all of these great prompts!**

**Love Always, Hayley**

* * *

**keeperofwords: I'd really like to see baby Rachel spitting food all over Cassie.**

**SDLS, Baby Food**

Cassie sat in front of Rachel, who was in a high chair. It was Rachel's dinner time, and Shelby was finishing up dishes so Cassie offered to feed their baby girl.

She was starting to regret it, as Rachel had awoken early from her nap, clearly hadn't gotten enough sleep, and was being extremely fussy. Cassie struggled to get Rachel to even take any baby food in her mouth.

"Come on, Rachie," she pleaded. "Open up the cave!"

Shelby let out an amused laugh as she made her way out to the table, carrying the dish towel in her hand. Clearly Cass was struggling. "The cave?" she mocked.

"The...cavern?" Cassie tried again, pressing the spoon of mush that the little glass jar liked to call "carrots" to Rachel's mouth. Rachel scrunched her nose and turned her head from side to side.

Before the food could fall to the ground, she pulled the spoon back away from Rachel. Shelby just laughed again.

"What is so funny?!" Cassandra demanded.

"You honestly think words like "cave" and "cavern" are going to get her to open her mouth?" Shelby laughed and Cass gave her a look.

"She's tiny, it's not like she understands what I'm saying."

"Try tunnel," Shelby prompted.

"Tunnel?" Cass raised an eyebrow. Was Shelby starting to lose it? "I think the baby powder is going to your brain."

"Pretend the spoon is a train."

"Shelby-"

"Just trust me," Shelby smiled.

Slowly, hesitantly, Cassie shook her head and dipped the spoon back into the jar, putting it up to Rachel's mouth. "Open up the tunnel, Rachie, here comes the train, choo choo!" she smiled at Rachel and rolled her eyes at Shelby and Rachel actually, to Cassandra's dismay and delight, opened her mouth and took the food.

Shelby smiled triumphantly at Cass and Cass sighed. "No fair." she mumbled. "What the hell's the difference between a tunnel and a cave?!"

"A tunnel, my dear, has an exit on the other side. A cave does not." Shelby stood and turned to walk back out to the sink but before she could Rachel spit the carrots out, all over Cassandra.

With wide eyes, Cass wiped spit up carrots off of her cheek. "Gross, Rachel. Okay you little monster. We can play the stubborn game."

"Rachel agrees with me." Shelby covered her mouth and laughed at the scene in front of her. A horrified Cassandra covered in orange baby food and completely ready to tackle Shelby to the ground if she said another word.

"Guess you just don't get any carrots then, Rach," Cass shrugged, teasingly and started to close the jar.

"Ahhh!" Rachel protested, reaching her hands out towards Cassie.

Cass laughed and reopened the jar. "Are you going to eat now?" she asked.

Rachel continued to open and close her hands in begging.

"Okay," Cass agreed. "First let me go give Mommy a big kiss."

"OH no you don't," Shelby jumped back from Cassandra's reach. Cassandra who had carrots on her face and mouth and in her hair. Cassandra who needed a shower.

"Yes, yes I do, get over here," Cass stood and reached out for Shelby. Shelby rolled up her towel and went to smack Cass in the ass with it.

"Get away from me, carrot top," she joked.

"You're funny," Cassie scrunched her nose and chased Shelby around the kitchen until she cornered her against the sink.

Shelby reached behind her, turned the sink on, and grabbed the hose, spraying Cass in the face with it.

Cass gasped and sputtered. "What the hell, Shelbs?!" she demanded, catching her breath.

Shelby giggled lightly in a way so adorable that Cassie couldn't help but forgive her immediately. "You needed a shower," she said innocently.

From her high chair, Rachel let out a loud sound that Cass and Shelby considered a laugh.


	38. Full Night's Rest

**Another little fluffy drabble that came about because I woke up this morning and checked my email and misread a prompt. Read "first sleep" instead of "first step" (I will get one with her first step, eventually) and already had it half done so here it is. Still working out the proposal and it's kicking my ass so I really hope it's good.**

**Here's what I did, my lovelies.**

**This is what I get for not thinking about the consequences of my timing before I write. Grr.**

**Because of my mistakes in timing, Shelby and Cassie will have a little less than 4 months to plan a New York wedding. But fear none, for I am working it out. I have the timing finally figured out and what i'm going to do for the proposal (and i'm slowly figuring out how I'm going to do the wedding) now it's just a matter of putting it all together and getting it down the way I want it. That's the hard part.**

**Anyways, enjoy and I love you all.**

**Also a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Miss Lea Michele! (AKA little miss Rachel Berry). We love you, Lea! Hope your birthday is amazing! **

**With love always, Hayley**

* * *

**Full Night's Rest**

Finally. Rachel was finally asleep. Cassie (it had been her turn to try to put Rachel down-the fussy little girl was hell bent on staying awake) had to practically drag herself to Shelby's room.

Exhausted, she fell down onto the bed and pulled the covers over her. Shelby, sensing her presence, let out a soft moan and rolled over, pulling her lover closer to her.

"C'mere." Shelby mumbled.

Cass let her body be manipulated as Shelby pulled her close and wrapped her arms around her. The blonde was too tired to actually move herself.

But eventually, she managed to relax against Shelby. The two women drifted into a dead sleep. Complete blackness. Too tired to dream.

Their bliss lasted a solid two hours.

Rachel let out a loud shriek which was amplified by the baby monitor, and both women jumped, startled, and woke. Their heads smacked together when they started and both women let out an, "Oww..."

"Not it," Cassie groaned, taking the blanket off of Shelby and wrapping it around her, rolling over to the side.

"But I gave birth to her..." Shelby complained, laying on top of Cassie in reach of the blanket.

"Guilt trips not working this time Shelbs," Cass mumbled into her pillow.

"Ugh." Shelby slowly, tiredly, made her way out of the bedroom and to the nursery. "Rachel..." she dragged out. "Sweetheart you need to sleep..."

She got into the nursery, picked Rachel up out of her crib, sat down in the rocking chair and rocked her slowly back and forth, back and forth, back and forth.

_"Frere Jacques, Frere Jacques,_

_Dormez-vous? Dormez-vous?_

_Sonnez les matines, sonnez les matines_

_Ding dang dong, ding dang dong."_

She sang softly.

Rachel continued to whine and sob. Just not as loudly.

_"Baby Rachel, Baby Rachel,_

_Go to sleep, Go to sleep,_

_Mommy's really tired, Mommy's really tired._

_Sleep sleep sleep, sleep sleep sleep."_

She sang.

Rachel keep crying and Shelby let out a sigh. Cassie stood in the doorway, leaning heavily against the doorframe.

"Those are so not the words," she laughed, half asleep.

"I don't see you trying to get her to sleep."

_"Rock-a-bye baby-"_ Cassie started.

"No." Shelby shot her a glare. "We will not sing about our baby in a cradle in a tree that breaks so that she falls to her death."

Cass bit her lip and tried again.

_"Hush-a-bye, and goodnight..."_

She sang until the song was over while Shelby rocked her and finally, finally, they got her to fall asleep. Shelby put her very softly back into her crib and she and Cassie held each other up in able to get to the bedroom so they could finally sleep.

. . .

Cassie woke to...silence. She and Shelby had slept the entire night through. There was no screaming, or sobbing, or crying. Worried, she threw herself over Shelby and reached for the baby monitor, checking to make sure it was turned on, and turned up. It was both.

"Oh god, Rachel," she jumped out of bed, practically running to the nursery and opening the door slowly in case she was just asleep.

And she was. Their little baby girl was totally and completely asleep. Cass checked to make sure she was breathing-she was.

She had slept through the entire night.

The WHOLE NIGHT for the first time.

She made her way out of the nursery and jumped back up onto Shelby's bed, crawling on top of Shelby and kissing her cheek. "Rachel slept through the whole night."

Shelby flickered her eyes open and looked at Cassie, confused. "What?"

"Rachel. Slept. All night."

"All night?!"

"All night."

"Oh my god that's great," Shelby grinned from ear to ear, flipped Cassie off of her and off to her side, and kissed her lips softly, closing her eyes. "Now so can we. Is she still asleep?"

"Yeah..."

"Fantastic."

"Shelby-"

"Shhh. Sleeeeep..." Shelby slowly drifted back into unconsciousness and Cassie laughed, doing the same.


	39. A Promise, Pt1

**Born2Try: I really want to see this bad ass proposal.**

**Okay my lovelies, here's what's happening here. This is part one of the proposal. Really, it's setting up for the proposal.**

**Why? Because it was going to be one big huge long chapter and I was planning on finishing it before school starts up again. Well I go back to school Tuesday and as much as it pains me I'm not sure that's going to happen. Plus, this alone is 16 pages and that was a lot and I just have it sitting there while I finish it and that seemed unfair to you who have all waited so patiently so here's part 1 (the first 16 pages) and while you read I will continue with my Greys Anatomy marathon and I will try my damndest to write and finish part 2 as fast as I can. Sound fair?**

**Tell me what you think! Your opinion always matters to me :)**

**I love you all so much and I've had a great summer writing for you :) I promise to continue writing throughout the school year as often as I possibly can so long as you continue to prompt me.**

**Also I apologize in advance if there are any grammatical screw ups. I did go back and re-read for a quick edit but my mind got a little distracted with what I wanted to write and reading wasn't a very strong focus xD **

**And my co-author/Beta/Best friend is in recovery from a life threatening car accident that happened to her last week. She has cracked ribs and some bruises and scratches and she needs her rest and I certainly don't expect her to edit my story in her time of recovery. It's a true miracle she got up and walked away from what happened to her. I want to dedicate this chapter (and all of my chapters I ever write, really) to her. Because really, she's made me a much better writer than I was before I met her, and I honestly probably would not be here today without her love and her support. I love her to death. She's my older sister, even if not by blood :) She's always encouraging me and there for me when I need her to be. **

**I love you, Lexie. This is for you :) Feel better, soon, babe and don't push yourself too hard, okay? Rest.**

**Without further hesitation, I give you A Promise, Pt.1**

* * *

**A Promise, Pt.1**

It was late one night, while Shelby was asleep against her, when Cassie started up her thinking of proposal ideas once more. At this point, she was starting to think that "cliché'" didn't mean it couldn't also be bad ass. Shelby WAS a hopeless romantic, after all.

So really, she thought to herself, I just have to go for romance.

But what hadn't they done?

Dancing-check.

Singing-check.

Walks on the beach-check.

Flowers and chocolate and cheesecake-check.

What she wouldn't give for an epiphany.

A crack of thunder resounded from outside and Shelby heard it in her sleep, waking, and clutching Cassie tightly, a whimper escaping her mouth.

Shelby absolutely loathed storms. They terrified her. She had no control, they were unpredictable. The loud sounds reminded her of her parents fighting-of her father yelling at her to do better. And the lightning was just...dangerous. Scary.

Of course one of the rarest things had to be occurring outside-thunder snow. A thunder snow storm, in the middle of December. What were the odds?!

"Shh, sweetheart, you're safe." Cassandra assured her lover, rocking her slowly back and forth to calm her-to soothe her. She placed a soft kiss to Shelby's forehead and rocked her.

Another crack of thunder sounded and Shelby's eyes shot open, full of a deep concern that had beforehand been suppressed. "Cassie," her lips moved against Cassie's chest as she whispered, nervously, slowly lifting her head up. Cass placed a delicate hand to the back of her lover's head, affectionately.

"Your father's not here, sweetheart, and he's a changing man." she tried to get Shelby to relax.

Lightning flashed; thunder rattled the windows.

"Can people change, Cassie?" Shelby asked, a hot tear slipping down her face and wetting Cassandra's neck.

Tenderly, Cass placed her lips to Shelby's temple. She felt so horrible for her when she got like this. The strong, independent, confident Shelby Kimberly Corcoran wasn't easily broken. But when it came to the matter of her past-her childhood, her parents, and storms...she just couldn't stay strong. And that upset Shelby even more. Because she was raised to be "perfect". She was always forced to be something she wasn't. And now that was all she knew.

"People change all the time, love." Cassandra assured Shelby softly. "I've changed, haven't I? You've changed, Rachel's changed, Holly's changed."

Slowly, Shelby turned her head to see Cassandra's ocean blue eyes. One thing Shelby had always loved about those eyes was the way they alternated between colors.

"Can I change?" she asked.

Another strong crash of thunder. Shelby's grip on Cassandra's waist tightened. How the hell did Rachel just sleep through this?!

"Why would you want to change?" Cass asked her. "You're perfect the way you are."

Shelby was shaking. "Exactly. My parents, they-they brainwashed me into being perfect. I don't want to be perfect, I want to just be-" Thunder made her jump. "Be Shelby and I don't know how." Her eyes were wide-frantic and searching Cassandra's face for answers. "I don't know how, Cassie." Another tear fell and Cassandra used her thumb to wipe it, delicately. "Will you help me-change? Be me, be Shelby? Please. Please help me."

"I'll help you." Cassandra placed a comforting hand on the small of Shelby's back. "I promise, Shelby. I'm here and I'll help you. You're not alone. EVER. I will ALWAYS be here, I promise. You hear me?"

Shelby nodded and placed her lips to Cassandra's, gingerly. "I need you." she kissed her again. "I was always told not to need anybody but I do, Cassie, I need you."

"You have me." Cass placed her hands on Shelby's face; caressed her. "You have me. Forever. I need you, too."

A flash of lightning was blindingly bright. Shelby sharply turned her gaze towards the window.

"Make it stop." she begged.

"Shelby, look at me," Cass told her, carefully moving Shelby's attention to her. "I can't control the weather." Shelby's eyes flicked back to the window then back to Cass. "Don't look out there, look at me." Cass said.

Shelby nervously did so. She was so tense from the storm-it put her on edge. Sitting up, Cass leaned against the headboard of the bed for support. She reached over and wrapped her hands around Shelby's waist, moving so Shelby would relinquish her hold on her, and pulled Shelby up on top of her, until they were sitting stomach to stomach, Shelby's legs wrapped around Cassandra's back.

"Listen to what I'm saying to you, Shelby." she instructed.

"Okay."

"You want to change?" Cassandra asked.

"Yes," Shelby confirmed shakily.

"You want to be yourself."

"Yes,"

"The first thing you need to do is let go of this fear of thunderstorms."

Shelby's breathing got heavier and faster and Cass ran her hands down Shelby's arms; up and down, up and down, in a soothing manner.

"Shelby-"

"No-"

"Shelby, listen to me. That fear, was instilled into you by them. That's all their influence, your father's influence and the only reason you're afraid is because of what happened; because of what your father did and you have to let go. It's over-"

"He's still drinking." Shelby argued, shaking her head.

"Sweetheart, he can't hurt you anymore-he can't touch you when he's drunk we won't let that happen-"

"But it still hurts." Shelby told her. "It never stops hurting-"

"I know," Cass hugged her and Shelby pressed herself against Cassandra's neck. "I know."

They sat there, in each other's arms, intimately. Lovingly. Keeping each other safe; sane.

"I need to get out of here." Shelby stated after a moment of silence. The storm was getting quieter and she could feel her heart slowing, relaxing.

"You can't run away from this, Shelby." Cassandra warned. "You can't distract yourself, you can't run-"

"Not forever," Shelby clarified. "Just a week or two. A vacation. A fresh start. All of us, not just me. You, me, and Rachel. Maybe even Holly, if she wants to come with us. Or Santana, if Maribel doesn't mind. We just, we need a break from all of this stress."

Cassandra knew she was right. Everyone was busy and stressed recently. Too busy. Too stressed. They could all use a time out.

"I'll look into it," she said, pulling away from the hug. "Okay? But tomorrow. Shelbs, we need to get some sleep."

With a nod and a kiss, that's what they did.

. . .

The next day, Holly was over having lunch with them. Rachel and Cass and Shelby and Holly all sat in the living room afterwards. Shelby and Holly were having a conversation, Rachel was reading, and Cass was on her phone, looking for some sort of inspiration.

"Are you okay, Shelbs?" Holly asked, genuinely concerned. Shelby looked absolutely exhausted.

"What? Yeah, yes, of course I'm okay, I'm just-"

Holly raised an eyebrow at Shelby, as she was stumbling on her words, playing with her hands, sitting cross legged in her chair, looking down into her lap.

Slowly, Cass looked up from her phone and cast a glance at her girlfriend. She let out a long slow breath, unsure what to do yet. It seemed as if she never knew what to do anymore. And she hated herself for still mentally calling Shelby her girlfriend. It should be fiance' by now.

She scowled at herself and turned her attention back to her phone once more. Fuck that, she thought, I should be calling her my wife by now.

"Shelby, come on." Holly got serious for a moment and that was something that Holly Holiday rarely was.

"I'm fine," Shelby exaggerated the word.

"That's code for not okay."

"It was just the storm, it shook me up a bit. But I'm good, Hol, really. I promise."

Cass looked up again and met Shelby's gaze.

"Really," Shelby repeated herself.

Rachel was entranced in her book and completely missed the conversation entirely. Cass looked down at her phone and saw a picture of the ocean. It was a big, blue ocean with waves captured beautifully and crystal clear water and it looked marvelous. Looked...truly relaxing. It looked fan-fucking-tastic is what it looked like.

That's when the thought hit her.

"What about a cruise?" she blurted out, a little louder than she had hoped to, scaring Rachel so that the young girl dropped her book and lost her page.

"Mamaa..." she complained with a scowl.

Holly and Shelby turned their heads and looked at Cassandra. Holly slightly confused, Shelby completely understanding. Her facial expression changed into that of someone even...calm.

"That sounds...beautiful." she whispered.

"What about a cruise?" Holly repeated the question with a different tone.

"What about we all go on a cruise?" Cassandra stated. "Get away for a week?"

"What's a cruise?" Rachel wondered.

"It's a trip, for a week or so, on a big boat," Holly explained to her.

Rachel cocked her head to the side. "How big is the boat?"

Holly thought about it in terms Rachel might understand. "It's like a miniature town on a boat, Rachie."

"Woah," her eyes got wide.

"You up for it?" Cass asked Holly.

With a shrug, Holly thought all of this was very sudden, but she was never one to shy away from some random extra fun. "Why not?"

"Do we have the money for it?" Shelby asked Cassie as Cass immediately started searching the internet on her phone for family cruises.

"Yeah, we'll figure something out."

"Won't that dip into wedding money?" Holly wondered, knowing it was probably none of her business but Holly was so close to them that pretty much everything became her business.

"What wedding?" Shelby snapped, shakily. "She hasn't proposed! Maybe I should be the one to do it, is that what you're waiting for?"

Holly dropped her jaw and couldn't for the life of her figure out why the two people she knew loved each other more than anyone else in the world were being so hostile towards each other. Cassie snapped her head around and looked at Shelby, confused.

"No, that's not what I'm-what's wrong with you today?" she asked.

"I-" Shelby looked back down at her hands, taking another slow deep breath. "I'm sorry, Cassie. I don't...I'm going to take a shower." she stood and walked out of the room. Cass stared at her as she left, then exchanged a glance with Holly.

Rachel slowly looked up from her book and up at her Mama.

"What the hell was all of that about?" Holly asked Cass. "What'd you do?"

"I-" Cassie was at a loss for words. "I don't know." she mumbled. "Maybe it's what I haven't done yet..."

"Is Mommy okay?" Rachel asked her.

"...I don't know. I'm...maybe I should go check on her..."

"Be careful," Holly warned. "She seems pretty fragile."

Cass nodded, locked her phone, and set it on the table next to her, standing and stretching and making her way down the hall and to the bathroom. She turned the knob. Shelby had locked it.

She knocked; three light taps. "Shelby?" she pressed her forehead up to the door and listened for a response. There was none, and she was about to knock again when she heard the soft, broken, strained answer,

"I'm so sorry Cassie. I don't know what's wrong with me."

"Baby, open the door," Cass said, pleading.

The lock slowly turned and Cass gave Shelby a second to back away from the door before she pushed it open. The water was running in the shower but Shelby was fully clothed, looking concerned, wide eyed, and lost.

"What if I can't change?" she whispered.

"Shelby," Cass walked past Shelby, turned the water off, and turned back to her lover, holding her arms firmly but lovingly. "You can do anything you want to do."

"I don't know how to be me," she whispered. "There is no me, they took that away from me."

"But you can get it back." Cassandra promised her. "Look at me, Shelby."

Shelby kept her eyes to the floor.

"Shelby, look into my eyes." Cass instructed.

Shelby looked up, carefully.

"I love you." Cassandra told her. "I love you so SO very much. And one day soon, I'm going to marry you. Whether you say yes or not, at this point," she joked and Shelby actually cracked a half smile, laughing lightly. "And you're going to find out who you are, and I'm going to be there with you every step of the way, for better or for worse in sickness and in health until death do us part, okay?"

"But you fell in love with the me that they created." Shelby worried. "What if you don't like the real me?" Her breathing was heavy.

"Shelby, sweetheart, I fell in love with ALL of you. Every single part of you, okay? And we're going to get through this. I love you no matter what. Forever."

"Okay. I love you no matter what and forever, too."

"Let's go on a family cruise and ignore responsibility for a week. Clear our heads so we can start over. A new chapter."

"Okay," Shelby whispered with a soft smile. Because somehow, someway, no matter how horrible she was feeling, Cassandra always ALWAYS knew how to make it all better. "Can I take a shower first?" she asked with a light touch of laughter on her lips.

Cassandra placed a sweet, so soft you could barely feel it kiss to Shelby's lips and said, "Yes, of course," the corners of her lips lifting into a smile.

...

While Cassandra had gone to calm Shelby and figure out what was going on, Rachel closed her book and looked up at her Aunt Holly, who looked just as concerned and confused as she was. But that didn't stop her from asking,

"Are Mommy and Mama still gonna get married?"

Holly glanced down at the little eight year old, then got out of her chair and sat down next to her, crossing her legs and motioning for Rachel to sit on her lap.

"Of course your mommies are still going to get married, sweetie pie. Mommy's just a little upset right now."

"At Mama?"

"I don't think so, hun. I think the storm last night scared her. You know how Mommy doesn't like storms?"

Rachel nodded and Holly continued, "The reason why Mommy doesn't like storms sometimes makes her think about bad things, and that scares her and makes her upset for a little while."

"I didn't know Mommy could get scared of anything." Rachel said, thoughtfully.

Holly smiled softly. "Everyone's afraid of something, Rach," she informed the little girl.

"Oh," Rachel blinked. "Okay. Well what are you afraid of?" she asked.

Holly couldn't bring herself to answer with the truth-commitment.

Instead she just said, "I'm not sure, Rachie. Sometimes we don't always know. Do you know what you're afraid of?"

Rachel shook her head, then nodded. "I'm afraid that I won't get to be flower girl." she answered.

This made Holly laugh and hug Rachel tightly. "You will most definitely get to be flower girl, sweetheart, your mommies will make sure of it. Okay?"

"Okay."

It was a good enough answer for Rachel, for now.

. . .

"Is there any way we can book a cruise for next week? My girlfriend and I we're just, we're desperate for a vacation-"

Cassie decided that playing the desperate young lover's card might help them out.

"We can book a suite for you now if you pay up front. Can I have the names for the payment please?"

Cass mouthed the word YES very loudly to Holly and Shelby and the two women high-fived each other.

"Um, Cassandra July, Holly Holiday and Shelby Corcoran."

"Cassandra July and Shelby Corcoran?" the person on the phone sounded dumbstruck and Cassandra nearly screamed. PLEASE don't discriminate because of the Crazy Cassandra July thing, please please please please... "As in Crazy Cassie July and Shelby Corcoran?"

"Sure, yeah," if the bitch wanted to call her crazy, by all means, as long as she could book this cruise. They needed this time. To reset. To help with Shelby's mid-life crisis. To fix things. They NEEDED this cruise.

"One moment please," there was a scratching of papers and mumbled voices and Cass put the phone against her shoulder and looked at Shelby.

Shelby gave her a questioning look. "So what's...?"

"Well we're booking a Broadway cruise and they just found out I'm Crazy July so fingers crossed," Cassandra's tone was slightly bitter and Shelby bit her lip. Holly literally crossed her fingers and Shelby convinced Rachel and Santana, (who had showed up about an hour after they called Maribel and asked if they wanted to go on the cruise with them-Maribel said she wasn't good with boats but Santana could go with them. So then Santana and Rachel were excited to talk to each other about it) to do the same.

Cass put the phone back up to her ear and a different voice ran through the receiver. "Miss July?" the man asked.

"Yes?"

"We just had a cancellation in our performance line up and need a replacement. Miss Streisand is sick and unable to perform. Do you think Shelby Corcoran would be willing to take over for the week? All expenses paid?"

Cassandra's face lit up as her eyebrows skyrocketed and she nearly screamed in excitement. Shelby's face lit up at Cassie's, and Holly's upon seeing Shelby's and so on.

"Um, can I talk to her about it? And call back in a bit?"

"Of course, of course. Know that all expenses paid means literally every expense will be paid. Any show your party goes to see, all meals, room and board, everything. You'll be the cruise's VIPs. Free everything. Miss Corcoran will have to perform 5 concerts throughout a 7 day course but after that you'll all be free to do as you please. This will include the castaway concert the night we take off. Take your time deciding."

"Thank you very much," Cass said into the phone. "Bye." she hung up and threw the phone into the couch. "Oh my god, Shelby," she grinned. "You're going to flip."

"Why?" Shelby smiled nervously at her crazy crazy lover.

"Barbra Streisand is too sick to perform this cruise."

"WHAT?!" Rachel yelled.

"Indoor voice, Rachel," Shelby said disappointedly. She wanted to see Barbra too...

"Shelby, they want you to take over and if you do they'll give us the entire trip for free."

Shelby dropped her jaw. "No fucking way."

Rachel and Santana looked up at Shelby with wide eyes and Shelby realized her mistake of swearing in front of children. She glanced down at them quickly. "You didn't hear that and you won't repeat it."

The girls nodded quickly and Shelby grabbed Cassie's arms, warmly, tightly, excitedly. "Are you serious?"

"Completely. You'd have to perform 5 shows in 7 days, including the cast away party performance but other than that-"

"Oh my god, yes! Yes!"

"Are you sure?" Cassie took a moment to read Shelby's face. A few hours ago she was freaking out in the bathroom and now she was super excited about performing on a cruise.

Not that she could truly blame her; it would be an honor to replace THE Barbra Streisand for a week long cruise, who wouldn't be excited? But Shelby was going through a lot right now and everything was going to be very rushed and stressful.

"Can you deal with this stress? Things once you agree are going to move very fast..." Cass worried.

"Baby, I've got this. It'll be great." Shelby smiled. "Really, call the man back so we can start getting things together."

"...Okay."

"Really, Cassie," Shelby looked deeply into Cassie's eyes. "Book it. We are going to be absolutely perfect. Things will be fine. We can handle stress."

"If you say so." Cassie grinned and Shelby kissed Cassie's smile warmly.

"I do say so. Call them!"

"Okay!" Cass giggled. "Okay okay okay."

She called back and Rachel and Santana and Holly and Shelby all bounced up and down excitedly.

. . .

"Okay first things first," Shelby paced the kitchen, a work pen in her hands, a pad of paper on the counter in front of her.

Cassie knew she was going to do this. Get all OCD and pack-y.

"Shelby-" she started to intervene but Holly smacked her in the arm.

"Just let her go," Hol rolled her eyes.

Cass rolled hers too, knowing Holly was right. There was no way to control this; you had to just let her do things her way.

"We need to run to the store and get some things like sunscreen, new shampoo and conditioner and soaps, razors and shaving cream-"

"I'll go," Cassie volunteered. "But I'm taking Holly with me."

Holly shot her a confused, concerned look but Shelby, totally zoned and focused, didn't give it a second thought. "Fine, fine. You two go do that. Rachel and Santana, go to Rachel's room and find something to do."

The two young girls smiled at each other, excited for their adventure, and then Rachel glanced up at her mother, a little bit concerned at her state of hectic being. "Do you want me to pack, Mom?"

"No, sweetheart, you're eight." Shelby sighed with a small smile as she crouched down to Rachel's height. "You don't know how to pack essentials yet."

Rachel cocked her head to the side. "What does that mean?" she wondered.

"Exactly." Shelby laughed and kissed Rachel's forehead before kissing Santana's forehead and sending them on her way, standing, and taking a long, deep breath.

Cass put her hands on Shelby's arms, steadying her.

"Hey, hey, hey. Slow down."

"I don't have time to be slow, Baby, they need me down in Florida as soon as possible so I can run through sound checks and rehearsals..."

"Okay I understand that, I do," Cassie nodded her head. "I get it. But don't over exert yourself."

"I know what I'm capable of," Shelby scoffed.

Cassandra scoffed back. "Yeah, so do I."

She reached into the coat closet and pulled out her black pea coat, a pair of red gloves, and her grey infinity scarf and started putting them on. Holly did the same with her winter things. They would likely be out shopping for a while, and it was the middle of December. In fact, they would be going on a Christmas cruise. Therefore, things were about to be extremely store-busy and they had just gotten over a thunder snowstorm so things were also about to be very cold. At least until they made it to Florida.

When the realization struck Cassie that things were about to get crazy she took a deep breath so as not to panic. Someone had to be the sane one around here. Why could they not have thought about doing this sooner?

Whatever, they were going on a Christmas cruise for free.

At this point, living life in the fast lane was sort of a given.

"Shelby do you have a grocery list thingy written?" Cassie spun around, questioningly.

"Shh!" Shelby held a hand up to her and wrote a list fast. After a moment she bit the cap of the pen in thought and Cass moved to get the list but Shelby smacked her hand away lightly. "Don't touch." she commanded, and started writing again.

Finally, she handed the list over to Cassie. "Here, I think this is everything we need."

Cass glanced over the list, with Holly reading it over her shoulder. Even though Shelby had scribbled it down extremely fast, the list was covered in damn near perfect cursive writing.

**1. Shampoo, conditioner, body wash**

**2. Shaving cream**

**3. Razors**

**4 .Sunscreen**

**5. Tanning Lotion**

**6 .Bikinis **

**7 .Tank tops**

**8. Shorts**

**9. Flip flops**

Looking up from the list, Cassie furrowed her eyebrows at her lover. "Did you mix up the packing list with the shopping list, babe?"

Shelby shook her head, getting a mug of water and practically throwing it into the microwave. Cass only assumed it was for honey lemon water-now that Shelby knew she was performing for a week, she had to keep her voice up to code.

"No, all of our summer stuff is in storage and we don't have the time to get it all out." Shelby explained. "Since the cruise is free we have the money to buy a new summer wardrobe but don't go overboard. We only need a weeks worth of clothes, half of what I wear will be performance dresses I already own, and..." she paused and looked into Cassie's eyes. "Holly was right when she said we'd need money for the wedding. Whenever that ends up being."

This time there was no bitterness in her tone when she said it. Only stating facts. She reached her hands out and took Cassie's face in them, warmly. Holly cleared her throat, took the list, and started walking towards the door.

"A Christmas cruise, sweetheart. One that I'm performing. It's our getaway. Our fresh start." she pressed her lips to Cassie's passionately, surprising the hell out of Cass. She let out a gasp when Shelby's tongue flicked across hers.

"Our fresh start," she managed to breathe out once they broke apart, her heart slamming nervously against her chest. There was so much to be done.

Scrunching up her nose, Holly called from the front door, "Okay you lovebirds, we have no time to waste on make out sessions, July let's get out of here."

"I love you," Shelby smiled, Cassie's hand in hers.

"I love you, too," Cass started walking away, holding on to Shelby's hand until it was no longer possible due to distance.

Eventually, she and Holly made it out the door and Shelby put her hands on her head, taking a breath and going through everything she had to do in their heads. First things first, she knew she had to find all of their passports. Those had to be in the closet somewhere. Or maybe the desk drawer.

She finished making her honey lemon water and took a long sip of it, checked on the girls, and rushed to the bedroom to dig through the closet.

Shelby had the rest of the day and that night to get all of her things together, all of Cassie and Rachel and Santana's things together-they all had a plane to catch the next morning at 8. It would take about 3 hours to get to their port in Miami, Florida.

Her fresh new start was requiring an awful lot of work, and she was starting to wonder whether or not this would be a vacation or just a work trip with "fresh start" tacked on to it.

A more pressing question hit the back of her mind as she rushed around to get things together.

Would all of this even be worth it? Would she get her fresh start? Would she be able to figure herself out? Would Cassie still love her afterwards?

...Or would it just be their downfall?

. . .

Practically striding, Cass grabbed Holly's arm and rushed her down the street. "Hurry, we have to hurry."

"What?! Why? What the hell are you-"

"I have to get the engagement ring."

"You STILL didn't get her the damn ring?! What the hell have you been doing?!"

"I don't know, I was busy freaking out about how I was going to propose I didn't think about proposing so soon on a Christmas Cruise to the Caribbean starting on Monday, Jesus, Holly, I'm freaking out!" Cass panicked. "You have to help me pick out a ring."

"Okay, July, you need to calm your ass down." Holly warned her as they crossed the street and headed towards Kay Jewelers. "Take a deep breath, you'll find the perfect ring. Don't rush, either. You'll know it when you see it."

Speed walking, Cassie mumbled hurriedly, "Yes, but I have to get to it before Shelby realizes we've been gone for longer than we should be."

With that, Holly got a splendid idea. She grinned evilly. They would get shit together in time if it killed her. "Give me back the list."

Hastily, Cass rummaged through her pockets and got out the list. Snowflakes landed on her coat and she let out a freezing and anxious shiver as she did so.

"I'll go get through this list while you search for an engagement ring."

"Okay," Cass stumbled. "Okay but wh-what if I don't find the right one?!" she panicked.

Holly smacked her in the face, lightly, but hard enough to get her attention and redden her face even more than the cold already had. "FOCUS, July. You'll get it, sweet cheeks. Just think about Shelby. Think about that ring on her hand. You know which ones the right one. Now get your ass in there, I'll meet you back here in an hour. Okay?"

Cass was dumbstruck. 1 because she didn't expect Holly to slap her. 2 because she couldn't believe she was stupid enough to wait so long to get a ring. 3 because she was afraid of buying the wrong one. 4 because she was afraid she wouldn't have enough time to pull all of this off. 5 because she still had no clue how exactly she was going to propose, so much as she knew she was going to do it on the cruise.

"Okay?" Holly shook Cassandra's shoulders.

"Okay," Cass managed to get out.

"Go." Holly instructed.

Cassie was thankful she had Holly as a maid of honor. At this point, no matter whose maid of honor Holly thought she was, she was Cassie's.

...

"Santana," Shelby called into Rachel's room.

The young Latina girl ran out of the bedroom and towards Shelby's voice, which was coming from Shelby and Cassie's bedroom. She had their passports on one side of the bed, two suitcases open on the other, ready to be packed.

"Yeah, Shelby?" she asked.

"I called your mother and she's packing your bags for you. She's dropping it off and coming over to say goodbye in half an hour. You'll be staying here with us tonight so we can get up super early in the morning, okay?"

"Okay!" Santana exclaimed, happily rushing back to Rachel's room.

"Rachie, Rachie!" She called, crashing into Rachel once she made it back.

Rachel giggled. "What, Sannie?"

"We're going on a cruise!" she said happily, clapping. "And I'm staying over here tonight so we can get on a plane in the morning."

"I know, silly." Rachel rolled her eyes.

Santana smirked at Rachel and rolled her eyes back. "I've never been on a boat before." the young girl admitted.

Rach sat down on her bed and patted the spot next to her. "Never ever?" she asked, curiously.

San shook her head from side to side. "We didn't have money for it. And your mommies are getting it for free."

"Not ENTIRELY free," Rachel pointed out. "Mom's singing for it. She's a worker, Sannie."

"I know," San smiled. "I'm just happy I get to go with you."

"Me too," Rachel reached out and hugged her best friend tightly. "I wish Kurt could come though. And Jesse."

"And Quinn!" San pointed out.

Rachel scrunched her nose. "Quinn doesn't like me," she pouted.

"She will though, Rach. I'll make her like you."

"How?" Rachel giggled, bouncing up and down on the bed, unable to contain her buzzed excitement.

"I don't know," San shrugged. "Somehow, someday, eventually. But we get to go on this trip together and she doesn't." she pointed out.

Rachel nodded. Sometimes it felt like Quinn took Santana's time away from her, and that made Rachel mad. Santana was HER best friend. But Sannie was right, QUINN didn't get to spend a week with Santana, only Rachel did. And they were going to have so much fun even if it was sort of scary because neither one had ever done anything like this before. They would have each other.

"And we're spending Christmas together," Rach pointed out, after a moment of thought.

"And Christmas!" Santana agreed. "But will Santa get to us all the way out in the middle of the ocean?" her eyes widened in concern.

"I'm sure he'll figure something out," Rach nodded, certain.

"Okay," Santana agreed.

And the two girls put on music and danced and sung until Santana's mom showed up to say goodbye.

. . .

It had been a solid hour, Holly had successfully managed to get everything off of Shelby's list (lucky for everyone she knew Cassie and Shelby's clothing sizes and styles. Why? Because she was their best friend) and was heading back to Kay's to find Cassie.

She had hoped with all of her might that Cass had already found a ring and was just waiting. But when she got to the jewelry story she discovered that all of her hope was lost.

Cass stood at the display case, staring. Just staring. Mentally attacking herself.

What if Shelby doesn't really want to marry me? Of course I booked wedding things a year in advance because I knew she wasn't going to say no but what if she does? What if within this level of self-discovery she realized that her true self didn't really love Cassie? What if-

"Why haven't you found a ring? Shelby's going to KILL you." she heard Holly's voice walk up to her from behind. There was a pause before Holl added, "And then she's going to kill me. Have you at least narrowed it down to like three?"

Slowly, feeling terrified (more than she ever had before), Cass shook her head.

"What does that mean?" Holly tried to read her expression. "No you haven't found any ring that would look good on Shelby, out of this gallery of a trillion to choose from, are you fucking kidding me?"

"What if she doesn't love me?" Cassie deadpanned, only quiet enough for Holly to hear.

"Cassandra for god's sake." She readjusted all the bags on her arms and grabbed Cass's right arm with her free hand. "Point to a ring you like."

"They're all wrong! And it doesn't matter what I like, it matters what Shelby likes."

"Shelby would obsess over all of these rings and you know it."

"But there's only ONE perfect one. The one I can imagine her saying yes to."

"Cass," Holly softened her tone. "You know just as well as I do that Shelby would say yes to you if the ring was plastic and came out of one of those 25 cent machines. One of these rings HAS to be the right ring." she turned her attention to the man behind the counter, who was just now finishing up with another customer. "Hey you," she called to him. "Hottie with the body."

Amused, the salesman spun around and raised an eyebrow. "How may I help you, Madame?" he asked, her catcall had spiked his interest.

"It's not me you can help but bridezilla here," she dragged Cassandra closer to the counter. What would Cass do without her? She wasn't sure she wanted to know. "We have to find an engagement ring for her bride-to-be, fast. And it has to be gorgeous and it has to be perfect. This is your level of expertise, am I right?"

Double blinking, the man grinned and said. "Bride-to-be, huh? Can you describe her to me?"

Now it was Cassie's turn to double blink. "What does Shelby's appearance have to do with-"

Holly smacked her arm again. "Just do what the man says," she said through her teeth.

"Appearance and personality, if you will, Madame." he addressed Cassandra and she put a hand to her forehead before pushing a piece of long blonde hair behind her ear. "Um...Okay. She's brunette, with gorgeous green eyes. She's about 5' 5''. She's strong. So strong. Emotionally and physically. She's a singer-music is her life, she has the voice of an angel. She...she's perfect. I mean she says that she's not but she really is." At this point Cassandra had gone off into her own little reverie of thought about her soon-to-be-wife. "She's organized. She's so smart. She's great under pressure and with an audience. She's just...she's incredible and she's so beautiful and she's...she's mine."

Her eyes had glazed over with feeling, as had Holly's. Cass pulled herself out of her daze and looked up at the salesman, who was smiling brilliantly at her, holding a ring in his hand with a perfectly poised gloved hand.

"What about this one?" he said.

Cass looked down at it with wide eyes. She saw it in flashes-Shelby with tears streaming down her face and whispering yes, before saying it multiple times and crashing into her arms. It was beautiful. It was a moment that needed to happen. And the ring was...

"What is it?" Holly wondered with a dropped jaw.

"It's called a Royal Halo Bypass Swirl," he informed her."$2,960, platinum, the bouquet of diamonds accents the 1.75 carat diamond in the middle, and the crossover pattern accentuates the ring finger beautifully."

"I'll believe that," Cassandra whispered.

"It's pricey," Holly pointed out, bluntly.

"Don't care," Cassandra was dazzled by the ring and she knew Shelby would be too. "Shelby's worth it. It's perfect." She looked into the eyes of the salesman. "You're brilliant. It's stunning. How'd you do that?"

He laughed, a deep and sincerely amused laugh. As if this happened every day. Hell, it probably did. "It's my job, Madame."

Cassandra's heart leapt. Maybe this whole proposal and marriage thing wouldn't be so hard and stressful after all. It didn't have to be, right? The journey was supposed to be just as fun and eventful as the destination, right? Or even better?

She had hope, as she and Holly walked back to the apartment, that it was finally, actually going to turn out that way.

. . .

When Cassie and Holly got back to the apartment, they set all of the bags on the couch. Cass got the box with the ring and put it in her coat pocket. She went into her and Shelby's bedroom, happy to find that Shelby wasn't there, and also found that Shelby had already packed both of their suitcases, for the most part. Besides of course the clothes that Holly had just picked out, which Cassie was now remembering that she hadn't actually seen any of yet.

Carefully, she hid the ring box in the very bottom of her suitcase and zipped it up. After which she quickly made her way back out to the living room, seeing only Holly there. If Shelby wasn't in the bedroom or the living room, and she could see clearly that she wasn't in the kitchen...

"Where is everyone?" she asked Holly. Rachel and Santana were AWOL too.

"I've no idea, babe. Try Rachel's room? But for now I've gotta get out of here. I've got shit to pack and a passport to find." she kissed Cassie's cheek and Cassie kissed hers back. "Love you."

"Love you too. You're my Maid of Honor, right?" she asked hurriedly, before Holly could rush out the door.

"Goodbye, July." Holly's tone was condescending as she rolled her eyes.

"Ugh. Bye." Cass crossed her arms over her chest with a little pout and started walking towards Rachel's room.

She found her Little Star, and her Singer and her Mini Dancer huddled around Rachel's bed. The two young ones watched with wide, interested eyes as Shelby systematically placed clothes into Rachel's suitcase. Another suitcase rested on the floor in the corner of the room, next to a separate bag. Cassie could only assume it was Santana's.

Warmly, Cass wrapped her arms around Shelby's waist and kissed her cheek. "Take a break, baby, you've been working nonstop-"

"We don't have time for a break-" Shelby tried in haste to break free from Cassandra's grip.

"Yessss," Cassie laughed. "Yes we do."

With a long sigh, Shelby stopped packing Rachel's things and tilted her head back onto Cassie's shoulder. Cass looked down into the suitcase.

"Oh, hey, did Rachel need summer clothes? Holly got the clothes so I'm not sure what she-"

"You let HOLLY buy our clothes?! Did you plan on actually covering yourself up at all? Have you SEEN Holly's clothing style?"

"Relax, Shelbs, she knows how we dress," Cass rolled her eyes with a light smile.

"Right." Shelby rolled her eyes back and Cassie let go of her, moving towards Rachel. She scooped her Little Star up into her arms, making the little girl laugh.

"Mamaaa," she giggled.

"Rachelllll," Cassie laughed back. She sat down on Rachel's bed with Rachel in her lap. "I'm sorry Mommy and I have been so busy getting things together." she told her. "I promise we aren't ignoring you on purpose." she turned her head to Santana and Shelby pressed a soft hand to the young Latina's face. "Either of you." she assured them.

"We know," Santana smiled. "We're just excited to go, aren't we Rachie?"

Rachel nodded, hyper and grinning wildly. "Santana's never been on a plane before, Mama! Or a boat!"

"Well there's a first time for everything," Cass told the girls with a warm smile.

Shelby sat down on the bed next to Cass and put her hands to her forehead, her head between her knees, taking a long, deep, calming breath to steady herself. She knew her OCD perfect-packing-and-everything-ready-and-in-order act wasn't naturally her. It was something instilled into her by her parents when she was young. Something she did because they had always taught her that's how you do things. She took another deep breath and tried to talk herself out of the feeling of everything needing to be done right away and perfectly.

_It doesn't have to be done right RIGHT now._ She told herself. _It doesn't need to be perfect._ She reminded herself. _You don't feel sick. Calm the hell down._

_Calm down._

_Calm DOWN!_

Taking another breath, she looked up at Cassie and Rachel and Santana and smiled at them. She was glad her Little Star and their Mini Dancer (that's what Cassie had taken to calling Santana) were so excited for the trip. She just hoped that the trip would work out the way they wanted it to.

. . .

The girls were in bed, final packing was being done, and Cassie and Shelby were in their room, finally going through the clothes that Holly had bought them.

Raising an eyebrow at what Cass pulled out of the bag, Shelby smirked. Holly had bought Cassie a black bikini, fairly exposing, completely form fitting. Cass let out a light groan, rolling her eyes and tilting her head back. "Holly..."

"You see," Shelby smirked. "This is what you get for letting Holly buy your-"

She pulled out her own bikini. The only difference was that hers was purple. "Damn it." she cursed.

"Karma's kind of a bitch, isn't it?" Cass offered as consolation.

"Holly couldn't warn us to get emergency bikini waxes, I suppose," Shelby pressed her lips together and Cassie couldn't help but smile.

"Stop your worrying, I'm sure the boat has a spa..."

"I can't," Shelby went from joking and okay to holding back tears in seconds. "Cassie I can't stop worrying. I've been trying to stop worrying all day and I just...I don't fucking understand how you can be so easy going. How you can just go with the flow of things and I-"

"Hey, hey, hey," Cass dropped what she was doing and reached out to Shelby. "Sweetheart, it's okay. Maybe your parents didn't do that to you, maybe that's just who you are-"

"How can I tell?!" Shelby asked, angry. Angry at her parents, angry at herself, just completely frustrated.

"You'll figure it out, Shelby, I'll help you."

Shelby let a few tears fall and Cassie looked at her poor broken Shelby. So...lost. So unlike Shelby. She wasn't sure what to do but hell if she wasn't going to do her best to help her. She placed her lips to a tear on Shelby's cheek.

"I'll help you." she promised. "I'm here for you, always. We're together on this. Forever."

"Forever?"

"Forever."


	40. A Promise, Pt2

**Alright my lovelies here, it is. Stayed up till 4:40 on my last night of summer to finish it! (Well, and I was watching the last episode of Season 8 on Greys Anatomy. I'm making progress, don't give me that look).**

**So I just checked my page count on Microsoft Word and I discovered that I started this story June 30th and It's September 1st and I have 232 pages. That is incredible and the most I've ever written in such a short amount of time so thank you for helping me achieve that.**

**There seems to be a slight misconception that after I write the wedding I'm done with this story. THIS IS UNTRUE!**

**I have 48 of your prompts to finish still! And any other prompts you want to throw at me! :) There is way too much possibility in this story to give it up so easily. As long as you prompt me I will always write :).**

**So I have some people to thank for the finishing of this chapter.**

**First off, my parents. For listening to me for continuous dinners rant about how I'm writing a proposal and how it's not yet perfect. My mom actually went inspiration wedding dress hunting with me online and Dad gave me some of the ideas incorporated in this chapter so...Thank you. For helping me finish it before summer.**

**A HUGE thank you to my sister for doing the same thing. And listen to me go on and on about it even though it's not her favorite thing and Glee is definitely not her favorite show. Thanks, Sissy. **

**Also a GIGANTIC thank you to keeperofwords, for emailing me late at night, talking to me about this story all the time, helping to feed my muse. For writing tribute chapters and making me smile, for encouraging me to finish even when I didn't think it would ever actually be written all the way and for calming me down, telling me not to worry, assuring me it will all work out, reminding me not to rush and a whole bunch of other things. I'm lucky to have made a new writing friend :)**

**Thank you to ALL OF YOU because none of this story would've made it beyond the first chapter if it wasn't for you and this is chapter...40?! Wow. Just Wow. I hope there are more and more chapters to come.**

**Now, this is all I'm writing for now of their cruise trip. If there was something about the cruise you wanted to see, let me know and I'll be happy to write it.**

**Now without ANY further hesitation because I know you've all waited long enough and I've waited long enough to show you, I give you A Promise, Pt.2.**

**I love you all so much! Love always, Hayley**

**A Promise, Pt.2**

The cruise ship was huge. Like absolutely huge.

You think you know what you've signed up for, and then you're standing on the main deck, looking around you and your family with wide eyes.

Rachel and Santana's eyes were the widest.

"Woah." Rachel breathed out. "It's-"

"It's gigantic!" Santana finished for her.

"Yeah! You're singing on this ship all week, Mommy?" She asked Shelby, who was holding her hand.

"I sure am, Rach,"

"That's amazinggg," she whispered. "Do you think I'll perform on big boats some day?" she asked.

Shelby laughed lightly and replied, "If that's what you want to do, Rach, I'm sure you'll do it. Nothing can stop you from following your dreams."

Rachel smiled her mega-watt grin and squeezed her Mommy's hand tightly. Shelby squeezed her little daughter's hand back.

Holly stood on the other side of Rachel, in awe of what was actually happening. A free cruise. A free vacation.

Santana, still a little shaky from her first plane ride, was holding Cassie's hand. They were led to their suite by the captain of the ship, listening to what he had to say as they all went.

"Now of course we don't set sail until tomorrow at noon, and Miss Corcoran-"

"Please, call me Shelby," Shelby insisted.

"Shelby," the captain amended with a smile. "Your first performance is scheduled for tomorrow night at 7, on the stage of the main deck that we just left. Your rehearsal is today at 3, out on the stage of the main deck."

"Aye aye, Captain," she responded with a smile.

He actually laughed. "Just call me Randy." he told her.

"Randy." she amended.

They walked past stores. Literal stores. And bars, and pools. A hair salon, a spa, a sauna. A work out room, a sports area, a dance studio. A recording studio, a theatre. This ship was freaking huge.

Finally they made it to their suite.

Their 3 bedroom suite that had a master bathroom, master bedroom, kitchen, and living area.

"Holy-" Holly started.

"Mother of-" Cass cut her off.

"Streisand." Shelby finished for them.

Randy chuckled a deep and amused chuckle. "I take it you're fans of hers? Originally she stays in this room but since she's home sick it's yours for the trip."

"Barbra Streisand's been in here?!" Rachel and Santana asked in excited unison.

"That she has." Randy confirmed. "I'll give you some time to wind down and relax. Just remember your rehearsal at 3. The rest of you are welcome to watch her rehearse." he grinned and moved to shut the door before Shelby said,

"Thank you so much,"

"Thank you," he retaliated. "Without you there would be no main performer on a Broadway cruise. That would be a sorry sight indeed."

He shut the door behind him and the family of 5 looked at each other before laughing excitedly and rushing around the suite, as if all of them were children, looking at everything and taking it all in.

One bedroom was completely Funny Girl themed-Shelby and Rachel's dream. But Shelby knew, grudgingly, she was going to have to let Rachel and Santana have it.

Another bedroom was elegant and red and black. Holly was obviously going to call that one-it was screaming her name.

That left the master bedroom to Cassie and Shelby. They certainly were not going to complain about that.

"Shelby!" Cassie called out from the back of the living area.

Shelby ran out of the master bedroom and towards the sound of Cass's voice. "What, Cassie?"

"Look," Cass pointed to a door leading onto a balcony overlooking the water. Better yet, it was overlooking exactly where the sun would set that night.

"It's gorgeous," Shelby was entranced by the sparkling water, the waves crashing up against the side of a still ship.

Cassie turned her head to look at the woman she loved. The woman who was performing during her whole vacation so that the family could go on vacation for free. The woman who was going through a mid life crisis and still had the time to manage a smile and stop to smell the roses. To appreciate the beauty of the moment. The woman she still had to propose to. The woman she was dying to marry.

"You're gorgeous," Cass told her. "I so just want to marry you already."

Shelby laughed lightly and looked over at Cassie, licking her lips before questioning, "Was that supposed to be my bad ass proposal?" teasingly.

"What? No, of course not." Cass gave a small half-smile. "I'm not sure how bad ass the actual proposal's going to seem at this point. Probably not at all. But there will be a proposal."

"Soon, I would hope? Do I have to wait to be proposed to before I start planning a wedding?" Shelby reached out for the railing and Cass reached around Shelby to put her hands over hers. Cassie's stomach against Shelby's back. Cassie's heart pounding and Shelby feeling it.

"No you don't have to wait." Cassie whispered into her ear before admitting, "I'm sorry for making you wait."

"I don't mind," Shelby informed her. "This wouldn't be the first time you made me wait to be with you."

It wasn't untrue.

"Low blow," Cass said softly. "You are with me."

"I want you." Shelby told her sternly. "All of you. As soon as possible. So please, tell me what's keeping you this time."

"It hasn't changed." Cass whispered against Shelby's flushed cheek.

Confused, Shelby pondered this for a moment before asking, "What hasn't changed?"

"My reason for making you wait."

That's when Shelby understood how deeply afraid Cassandra was. Of everything.

"Sweetheart," Shelby started softly.

"Shh." Cassie whispered, a tear slipping down her cheek. "Damn these tears."

"Cassie, what are you afraid of?" Shelby asked, insisting as Cassandra's tear wet her face slightly. "I'm not leaving you, you're not leaving me. Are you worried about commitment? Sweetheart, we haven't had a fight since Rachel was five. We've been committed to each other for 10 years, what's going to change once it's on paper?" she tried to understand. She put an arm up to caress the side of Cassie's cheek.

"I can't do it right." Cassie admitted. "Your proposal won't be as perfect as I want it to be. The wedding won't be as amazing as you deserve. You deserve so much more and I can't do any of it the way that it should be done and-"

"Cassie. Oh, my Cassie. I don't care how it's done. I just want YOU. And I'd prefer it to be soon, but I'll still give you the upper hand of the element of surprise. Though you know I don't like surprises...this time is different. I love you so much. No matter how you propose, no matter how the wedding is planned, no matter what. Don't you understand that?"

"Will that change? When-when you figure out who Shelby is?"

So that's what this was about.

Shelby opened her mouth to address the matter but before she could, Holly walked out onto the balcony with the girls. "This is pretty. What do you say we get unpacked? Shelby your rehearsal is in thirty minutes."

"Okay." Shelby said, slowly stroking Cassie's cheek before Cass kissed her knuckles. "We will talk about this." she said to Cassie softly.

"We don't have to." Cassie's wall started to go back up and Shelby cursed herself for having this rehearsal. Shelby spun around and looked Cassie in her eyes.

"We do and we will."

"Is everything okay?" Holly wondered, looking back and forth at the two women.

"Of course," Shelby smiled.

"Don't you dare lie to me." Holly warned.

"Why are you crying, Mama?" Rachel asked, nervously, looking up at Cass with concern. Santana's eyes were wide with concern too.

Shelby walked away from the scene and to the kitchen. She opened the fridge to find it stocked full. Finding what she was looking for, she made herself some honey lemon water.

"I'm okay, Rachel." Cassie promised her, picking her up and kissing her forehead. "These are happy tears." a soft lie to prevent a little bit of pain from reaching sweet little Rachel's heart. "Now, let's go hear Mommy sing pretty, okay?"

Rachel nodded with a big smile and Santana nodded too. But Holly watched carefully, protectively, and while Cass was showing Rachel and Santana their reflections on the water and making faces with them, Holly made her way out to the kitchen to find Shelby, mixing honey into a mug with lemon and hot water.

"Did she propose?" Holly wondered.

"No."

"Is that what the problem is?"

"No."

"You can't keep this from me, Shelbs."

"I know. But for now I can." she sipped her water and started doing vocal warm ups, walking around the suite and ignoring Holly. She focused on her voice. She focused on what she was going to say to reassure Cassandra later. She focused on how the vacation was more life changing than she thought it was going to be.

But really she just tried to focus on her voice.

Because she desperately needed the distraction.

. . .

"...well you're a funny girl. The fella said a funny girl. Funny, how it ain't so funny. Funny girl." Shelby sang. The song had just barely ended before she turned to the conductor of the orchestra and smiled.

"That was great, perfect. Brilliant. Can we run it one more time, I want to try it with a little more emotion on my part..."

She pushed her hair back behind her ears, smiled softly at Rachel in the audience, and took a deep breath, ready to start again and try to do it 5 times better.

Cassandra watched from the audience with Rachel on one side, Santana on the other, and Holly right behind. She watched as her lover worked-so in her element, so focused, and clearly trying to take her mind off of the elephant in the room between them.

Oh but she was so good at what she did.

Cassie supposed that was why they called it acting.

"Hey, Cassie," Santana piped up from the seat next to her.

"Yes, honey?" she turned her head to look at the inquiring young girl.

"Do you think once we get back home, after the wedding, Shelby would give me voice lessons, like how you teach me dance? I know she works with Rachel..."

Raising an eyebrow with an impressed smirk on her lips, Cass admitted, "I didn't know you were interested in strengthening your voice."

Santana nodded quickly. "Dancing is my favorite thing in the world," she told Cassie with enthusiasm. "But I really love singing, too. You think she would? If I ask really nice?"

"I'm sure she would love to give you voice lessons, San." Cassie reassured her warmly.

"Awesome." Santana grinned.

Unfortunately for Cassandra, Holly could see right through both her and Shelby's acts. Apparently they weren't as good at acting as they had hoped. But she sat silently for a while-they all did, while they watched Shelby work. So professionally. So wonderful.

They sat and listened to Shelby sing Heaven Help My Heart from the musical Chess. Emotion poured out of Shelby's voice, her body, her soul, her everything.

"Mommy's voice is so pretty." Rachel said from the other side of Cassie.

"It is." Cassie agreed, a small smile on her lips.

"What's going on with the two of you?" Holly muttered into Cass's ear, unable to hold back the question anymore. "You're spaced out and she's...being weird."

"She's incredible." Cassandra stated the obvious, still very focused on Shelby's performance.

"...And?" Holly didn't see the connection between Shelby being incredible and Cassandra seeming upset.

"And I'm Crazy July, okay?" they spoke so that Rachel and Santana couldn't hear-not that they were listening anyways, they were busy watching Shelby. "I'm Crazy Cassie July and people are going to see her with me and she's going to get heat for it. For my mistake. This is a Broadway cruise, you think people won't notice? They'll notice."

"Cassie, Shelby doesn't care about-"

"Yeah, well, I do. She doesn't need the extra stress."

"Can we just...try to have a good time?" Holly pressed, sounding desperate. She felt desperate. What were they keeping from her? "We're on vacation-"

"Ship hasn't sailed yet, Hol."

That got the concerned blonde to stop pushing and they all just sat in silence while Shelby worked. At one point they took a 10 minute break and Shelby made her way out to her family. Cass handed her a bottle of water, which she took gratefully and practically started gulping down.

"Thanks," she said, breathless after finally swallowing. "You all know you don't have to stay this whole time, right?"

Holly shrugged and smiled. "What else would we do, sweet cheeks?" she wondered. "Shops and whatever don't open until tomorrow."

"Oh, I see," Shelby joked with a wink. "I'm your last resort."

"Clearly." Holly teased back.

"Hey you," Shelby turned back towards Cassie and tapped her ass lightly, flirtatiously, as a form of distraction. "You okay?" she tried yet failed to read Cassie's expression; to read into her eyes.

"Yeah," Cass gave a soft smile. "Yeah, of course."

"Mmm." Shelby took another drink of water. "You're a liar."

"Are you okay?" Cassandra retaliated.

Shelby double blinked before answering, "Yes. Yes, of course."

"Remember when I used to tell you you're a horrible liar?" Cass stated slowly.

Shelby nodded.

"That hasn't changed."

Shelby opened her mouth to answer but Rachel jumped up into her arms, shocking her and almost sending her stumbling back. "You're doing amazing Mommy!" Rachel gushed. "Even better than Barbra!"

With a laugh, Shelby answered, "Thank you sweetie, but no one's better than Barbra."

"You are!" Santana insisted from on the ground, hugging Shelby's legs tightly.

"Thank you," Shelby smiled softly down at the girls then looked up at Cassie, concerned, holding a hand over Santana's head and an arm around Rachel so that she was facing the opposite direction when she mouthed,

"Are we okay?"

With a very light smile, Cassie said, "Yes, baby." she kissed Shelby's lips, a faint peck, before encouraging, "Go rehearse for your show. I'll still be here when you come back."

Shelby peppered Rachel with kisses and hugged Santana tightly before finishing off the bottle of water, wrapping her arms around Cassie's neck and whispering into it, "We will talk tonight. Just the two of us. We'll work this out, okay? I promise."

"Sing pretty," Cassie's throat felt tight-dry. Shelby had this incredible, amazing talent and a fantastic job to tend to. And she wasn't jealous-well possibly the slightest bit jealous-but really she was so happy for Shelby and that was the problem. Because once people started boarding the ship and recognizing their situation, Shelby was going to be ridiculed for it. Shelby was going to get the blow. And she didn't deserve that-it was Cassie's big train wreck, her screw up, not Shelby's.

Shelby had spent her entire life being judged by her parents, she didn't need it from her fans, too.

With a fleeting smile, Shelby went back on stage and continued to work. Cass let out a soft sigh. If things didn't turn around soon this was going to be a long trip.

. . .

After rehearsal they all went back to the suite to relax for the night. Well, as relaxed as relaxed could be, for the situation at hand. Holly set to unpacking things in her room and Santana and Rachel did the same in theirs, leaving Shelby and Cassie alone in the master bedroom. Alone to talk, if Cassie would.

But she wasn't.

"So I think I've got Funny Girl down but I'm pretty concerned about Don't Rain on My Parade. And Defying Gravity is intimidating me." Shelby tried to get her to say something, anything, and that finally got something.

"You could sing those songs in your sleep." Cassie told her, finding a pair of short jean shorts that Hol had bought for her to wear and putting them in a dresser drawer. "You do, actually." she laughed lightly.

"Baby," Shelby laid across the bed, dressed down to her pajamas. A pair of shorts and a practically see-through tank top.

Cassie continued to unpack and Shelby let out a soft sigh.

"Cassie, baby, you know we need to talk about this."

"Since when do you talk about things to solve them?"

"I don't know," Shelby admitted, surprised at the automatic defense that was thrown at her. "Maybe it's who I really am. Or maybe it's because I love you and it hurts me to see you so upset. Maybe if I knew what was going on-"

"There's nothing you can do, Shelby." Cassie spun around and saw her lover on the bed and nearly swooned but contained herself, refocusing and continuing. "It was a mistake I made years ago and now you're going to pay for it."

Shelby was really confused now. She thought they were still talking about what was going on earlier, with her figuring out who she was, but now it was about...what? About Crazy July?!

How was she going to pay for Crazy July?

"Come lie with me, Cassie." Shelby whispered, practically at a plea.

Cass laid down on the bed and Shelby spooned her, wrapped her arms around her comfortably, running a soft hand down her arm.

"How am I going to pay?"

"People are going to mock me all week, Shelby and I can take that. I'm used to it now. I'm that crazzzy actress and why would anyyyybody want to work with me? But you're going to get them too. The stares, the talks, the ridicule. I can't subject you to that-"

"You aren't. People will do what people do, Cassie, you can't control that-"

"I'm sorry." Cassandra whispered. "I'm so sorry. For everything. For not proposing yet, for being afraid, for being the Biggest Train Wreck in Broadway History."

"Cassie, please," Shelby placed her lips tenderly to Cassandra's neck and kissed her. "You don't have to apologize for having feelings. You don't have to keep suffering for a mistake you made years and years ago, it's over. Don't listen to the people. I won't listen to the people. Neither will Rachel or Santana or Holly. We're in this together-a family unit, you know that. And as far as me figuring out who I am without my parent's influence...that will NOT in ANY WAY affect the way I feel about you. I love you so very very much. No matter what. Every part of me loves every single part of you. Nothing is going to change that, you have to believe me."

Shelby slid an arm around Cassie's chest, her hand resting over her lover's heart. It was beating so fast.

"Relax." Shelby whispered to her.

"I believe you," Cass whispered back. "I love you too."

"Are we okay again?"

"Sweetheart," Cassie pulled herself closer to Shelby and turned her head so that their lips touched when she continued, "We were never not okay. Just a little..."

"Shaky?"

"Shaky. But I love you."

Shelby inhaled slowly, breathing in the sweet, sweet scent of Cassandra. Just her skin. Her face. Her beautiful face. "I love you too."

. . .

Later on that night, Rachel and Santana laid in the bed they were sharing, supposed to be sleeping. Instead, like all little girls who got to stay with each other over night and happened to be best friends, they were up talking.

"Sannie?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you think Mama and Mommy are still going to get married?" she asked.

"Of course they are, silly." Santana turned on her side and looked at Rachel. "Why wouldn't they?"

"Mama hasn't asked her yet."

"She will. Give it time."

"You sound like Aunt Holly." Rachel giggled.

"Well Aunt Holly's smart." Santana giggled back. "We need to go to sleep, Rachie. Big day tomorrow. And all week."

"Okay." Rachel sighed, turning on her side and smiling at Santana. "Goodnight, Sannie."

"Goodnight, Rachie."

San fell asleep right away, but Rachel just couldn't. She could sense that things between her Mommies weren't exactly right and she was bound determined to figure out what was going on.

Slowly, so as not to wake up Santana, she crawled out from out under the covers and got off of the bed.

Luckily for her she remembered where the master bedroom was. She opened the door to the master bedroom slowly and saw her mommies holding each other, fast asleep. She felt bad for waking them but this was urgent, she felt.

She walked over to Cassie's side and tapped her shoulder lightly. "Mama," she whispered. Cassie didn't wake, so Rachel shook her shoulder a little more. "Mamaaaa." she whispered a little louder.

Startled, Cass fluttered her eyes open and flipped around, rousing Shelby from her sleep as well. Cass looked at Rachel, concerned.

"Rachel, sweetie," her voice was rough from sleep. "What's wrong?"

"Are you and Mommy happy again?" she asked, curiously.

"Wh-what?" Shelby wondered, leaning up on her arm. "What are you talking about, baby girl?" she asked.

"You were upset with each other." Rachel was concerned.

"Not with each other, hun," Cass reassured her.

"Can I sleep in bed with you?" Rachel wondered.

"Of course, sweetie, come here."

Rachel climbed over Cassie and got in between her and Shelby. Her Mommy wrapped her arm around Rachel's waist and her Mama wrapped arms around her as well. It was a mommy sandwich.

"What about Santana?" Shelby wondered. "Won't she get lonely?"

"She's asleep," Rachel said. "And I just needed to be here. She'll get it."

Cassie laughed lightly and said, "Get some rest, panda-boo."

"Okay."

And the Singer, Dancer, and Little Star fell asleep in each others' embraces. Finally ready to face what lay ahead, together. Ready for the cruise, ready for the proposal, and the wedding, and anything else life threw their way.

. . .

"Welcome to our Broadway Cast Away Party!" The cruise director, whom Cassie, Shelby, Holly and the girls had met the day before, said excitedly into the microphone. "We're going to have a great Christmas vacation you guys."

A plethora of Broadway people let out loud cheers. Shelby and Cassie and the rest of the family crew among them. Shelby had her arm wrapped around Cassie's waist, lovingly. She leaned over and kissed her lips quickly. "Merry early Christmas."

"Merry early Christmas."

"Don't make me gag," Holly joked.

Cass shot her a sneer.

After things were kicked off, other passengers dispersed in able to find their rooms and explore the deck and what-not. Shelby had 7 hours before her performance, so six and a half until she had to get up on the stage and do sound check with the orchestra. The party would last most of the night.

Cassie was planning on proposing before said performance.

Still didn't know how.

At this point she didn't care and she knew Shelby didn't either. Improvisation was her best shot anyways. She knew, even with dance, that her best work was always unplanned. She didn't know why she didn't just come to that conclusion sooner.

The ship had just set sail. The family had time to kill before Shelby's first concert. They all decided it would be fun to explore the ship.

They passed multiple restaurants, tourist shops, bars, and even clubs. They walked through the theatre -apparently there was more than one.(Wicked was performing three out of the seven nights in the theatre they entered, but no one was there, and since Shelby was performing they were allowed to tour the stage). Rachel and Santana ran excitedly up to the stage and Rachel starting singing parts of No One Mourns the Wicked. Santana danced to her singing.

Shelby and Cassie and Holly watched with smiles on their faces. The girls were growing up so fast. They were thankful that Rachel had Santana as a best friend.

"Hey," Holly said, as if just remembering that she had been the one to buy Shelby and Cassie's weekly wardrobe. "Did you like the bikinis?"

Shelby smacked her upside the head, not enough to do damage but enough to inflict meaning.

"I'll take that as a yes," Holly smirked, turning her attention back to Rachel and Santana, who were dancing circles across a _Wicked _stage.

"They are totally and completely thought provoking and showy and-" Shelby's cheeks flushed just mentioning it.

Still smirking, Holly replied, "You're welcome."

Cassie smirked to and whispered, "Thank you."

"You see that?" Holly said to Shelby. "You see how your lover can be thankful? You'll thank me too, eventually. You'll see."

After a moment of thought, Shelby said, "You're Cassie's Maid of Honor, aren't you? I don't even get a say."

"What are you talking about baby cakes?" Holly said, faking shock. "Of course you get a say."

"Right," Shelby rolled her eyes with a smug look on her face. "That's fine. Whatever. Take her as your Maid of Honor."

Cassie dropped her jaw. "What?"

"Reverse psychology." Holly whispered quickly. "Don't buy in."

Shelby crossed her arms over her chest, stubbornly and Cassie said, "Oh, baby, come on. We can argue over this later, okay? Right now I think we need to hit the spa and get those emergency bikini waxes you mentioned earlier, before a bunch of Broadway women get the same idea."

"I can watch the girls, if you want," Holly offered. "It's the least I can do after forcing you to get, *gasp* waxes."

Cass shoved her playfully. "You sure?"

"Of course."

Shelby kissed Holly's cheek. "You're the best. Sometimes."

"I know." Holly smiled triumphantly.

Shelby started heading towards the exit and Cass said "Thanks," about to walk away as well before Holly grabbed her arm.

"Propose."

"While we're getting waxed? You're funny. You know instead of bikini I might just go Brazilian..."

"Seriously, July. Propose to her. Before her performance tonight."

"I'm going to! But proposing while getting waxed isn't exactly romantic, nor is it bad ass. Just because our asses will hurt, doesn't mean-"

"You are such a smart ass. You know what I meant."

"Yeah I know. Thanks for watching the girls, I'll see you in a little bit."

Shelby and Cassie walked, hand in hand, back to their sweet.

And boy oh boy, did they get looks.

"Was that Crazy Cassie July? With Shelby Corcoran?" one woman elbowed another and whispered in shock.

Shelby tightened her grip on Cassie's hand and pulled her close. "Don't listen." she muttered.

"Soooo not listening." Cassandra lied and Shelby could tell right away.

"Cassandra July," she warned.

"Okay! Okay."

They stopped back off at the suite before they went to the spa.

When they did, Cass sneakily swiped the ring box from the bottom of her mostly unpacked suitcase and hid it in her pocket.

. . .

Cassie got in before Shelby did, so she got out first as well. While she waited for Shelby to come out, she took the box out of her pocket and opened it, staring at the ring. Trying to think of something to say and drawing a blank.

"Improvisation." she chanted to herself, putting the box back. "Improvisation." It was starting to become her mantra.

Shelby walked out towards her, rolling her neck. "Hey, I'm wound pretty tight," she said.

Cassie eyed her up and down-she was sporting one of the new outfits courtesy of Holly. A body hugging v-neck tank top. Short jean shorts that made Cassandra day dream. She licked her lips and responded.

"Me too." raising a seductive eyebrow.

Shelby laughed and smacked Cassie's arm playfully. "I meant my neck, you perv."

"Specifics." Cass mumbled.

"I'm going to get a massage while we're here. Loosen up before my first performance. It's been a long time since I've performed, Cassie."

"Don't stress, babe. You'll do beautifully, you always do. I'll sit here and wait."

"You really want to just...wait?"

"Really. It'll be fine."

"...Okay..." Shelby gave her a soft kiss. "I love you."

"I love you too."

So Shelby went back into the massage room and Cassie got a brilliant idea. Oh the beauty of improvisation.

. . .

Shelby was in the massage room for maybe 5 minutes when Cassie stood and slowly walked into the room, without making a sound. The masseuse spun around, concerned, with wide eyes and Cassie held her finger to her lips, motioning for her to keep massaging Shelby's shoulders. The woman did so, continuing to look at Cassie as Cass pulled out the box and opened it to show the ring.

Nodding in understanding, the masseuse smiled and motioned her head for Cassie to take over. She moved towards the table and did so. Shelby had her face in the hole in the table, so it wasn't as if she saw anything.

Shelby could feel the difference though. Between the hands of the masseuse and the hands of Cassie. Of course, she couldn't tell at first that it was Cassie. She just assumed that there was a shift change or something, and continued talking.

The masseuse had asked her what was making her so stressed, so she had started explaining about the performance, and how until recently she and Cassie had been a little tense.

Cass nodded her head, telling the masseuse to keep prompting Shelby with questions.

"What made the two of you tense?" she asked, curiously. "If you don't mind my asking."

It was the same masseuse, Shelby noticed by the voice, but with different hands. She was curious but said nothing about that particular matter, instead figuring out how to word what she was about to word.

"We've been together for a long time, Cassie and I. We know how to drive each other insane and we do it well."

The masseuse played along and laughed lightly before nodding her head towards Cass, mouthing a good luck, and exiting the room, too quiet for Shelby to hear.

Cass dug in a little harder in Shelby's neck and Shelby let out a soft moan at the pleasure of her neck muscles loosening. It hurt but felt so good all at the same time.

Unfortunately for Cass, Shelby was getting one of those massages where removing any article of clothing was unnecessary.

Pity.

"We know how to drive each other crazy and so we do, sometimes. And she's...she's...god I love her to death but sometimes she's just so...out there. She's so insane. But it's a good kind of insane. But that doesn't make her any less insane."

"Mmm." Cassie hummed in understanding.

That's when Shelby realized it was her.

"...Cassie?" she whispered, confused.

Cass, now that she had been discovered, dug deeper into Shelby's neck and Shelby let out another soft little moan. Then, Cass promptly climbed up onto the table, straddling Shelby's back and moving her hips once, sending ripples down Shelby's spine-good ripples.

"Cassie," she whispered again, more confident this time. More turned on. More understanding.

Cassandra pressed her hands softly to Shelby's neck before placing kisses against it and sliding her mouth up to Shelby's ear, kissing it lightly before saying, "You think I'm insane?" in an amused fashion. "Guess that means you don't want to marry me, huh?"

"I-"

"You what?" Cass whispered seductively, lightly biting Shelby's earlobe before pressing a kiss to her temple.

"I did say it was a good kind of insane."

"Because you know,"

Cassie got up off of Shelby and off of the table and Shelby let out a whimper at the loss of contact. She sat up and spun around and stood, to see Cassie down on one knee, proposing traditionally, a black box in her hands.

Shelby smiled so hugely she was afraid her face would get stuck like that.

"I would still like to marry you, if that's okay. Because Shelby, baby, you are truly the best thing that has ever happened to me. And you've been with me through it all. You made me actually want to sober up. Get better. You make me want to live a better life. You give me something to live for. You're the only person I have ever opened up to, and will ever open up to. You're my true love. I have never EVER loved ANYONE as much as I love you. And I know, without a doubt, that I can trust you with everything I have. And I can't say that about anyone else."

Shelby continued to smile, gasping and putting a hand over her mouth as Cassie opened the box to show her the most gorgeous, marvelous diamond ring.

"I also know, without a doubt, that no matter how insane I am, no matter how much I might drive you crazy, you say it with love. We balance each other out. That you're my soul mate. You know, before I met you, I didn't believe in those. I didn't believe in true love. But you made me believe, Shelby. We've made it through so much together and we will always ALWAYS make it through. Because you need me and I need you and I love you so so SO very fucking much. So, Shelby Kimberly Corcoran, will you please please please with cherries on top marry me?"

Shelby laughed through her hand. "With cherries on top, huh?"

"Or on bottom, if you prefer." Cassandra smirked.

Licking her lips, Shelby sat down on the knee that Cassie had balanced up and whispered,

"Yes." before repeating, a little louder, "Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, a thousand times yes of course." She took Cassie's face in her hands and kissed her, a single tear falling down her cheek. "Yes of course I will marry you. I love you so much." she kissed her again and Cassandra smiled against her lips.

"Was that bad ass enough?"

"You're always bad ass. And you surprised the hell out of me."

They kissed once, twice, three times.

Lovingly.

Warmly.

Thankful for each other.

Excited to finally officially be engaged.

. . .

Shelby and Cassie went back to the suite to find Holly and Rachel and Santana getting ready for the cast away party. Something Shelby knew she should have been doing by now. She and Cass fell through the front door, excited and lovesick and smiling.

"Look who's back," Holly smirked. "Where the hell have you been? You do realize you have a performance in an hour, don't you?"

"I'm sorry, I was a little preoccupied getting PROPOSED TO!" she flashed her left hand towards Holly and Holly jumped up and down with an excited little squeal.

"Oh my god it's about time!" she grinned, pulling Shelby closer to her. "Let me see your hand, damn it!"

"Language," Shelby laughed, looking at the girls.

"English!" Holly responded.

Rachel and Santana bounced up and down happily for Shelby and Cassie. Rachel craned her neck and tried to push Holly out of the way. "You've SEEN it!" Rachel protested. "I wanna see!"

"Me too!" Santana complained, also trying to move Holly. "No fair!"

"Aunt Holly!" Rachel whined.

After getting a good look at Shelby's hand, Holly moved out of the way and Shelby crouched down so the girls could reach her. They beamed excitedly and Santana clapped her hands together.

"You see, Rachie?! I TOLD you they were still gonna get married." San told her excitedly.

"Why wouldn't we still get married?" Cassandra asked confused. "Wait a minute, were we doubting marriage?!"

"Well you only took years to do it," Holly muttered.

"Shut up, Hol," Cass mumbled before looking over at her fiancé. She adored being able to think that.

Her fiancé.

Fiancé.

Fiancé.

"Hey don't you have a performance to get ready for?" Cassie said to her fiancé.

"Yes. Oh my god yes." Shelby straightened back up and practically ripped her heels off, rushing to the closet in the master bedroom where she had hung up her performance dresses and yelled, "Cassie get your ass in here and help me put this dress on."

Cass laughed and rushed into the bedroom, shutting the door behind her just as Shelby was stripping. "You know," Shelby said as she ripped her bra off and reached for her strapless one. Cassie stopped her from putting it on for a minute and smiled down at her, kissing her lips softly. Shelby broke away from the kiss and reached to put her bra on. "We really need to stop swearing in front of the girls. They're going to have horrible sailor's mouths when they get older."

"Mmmhmm. I'll remember that." Cass kissed her again and Shelby finally managed to clasp her bra, with absolutely no help from Cassie.

"Okay if you're just going to be a distraction-"

"No, no I'll help, I promise."

"Mmhmm." Shelby rolled her eyes. "What dress do I wear?"

Cass went through the dresses and smiled. "The blue one."

"The blue one." Shelby looked at the dress and smiled. "Okay, will you help me zip it up?"

"Personally I think it looks better on the floor."

"Cassie."

"Okay, okay. You do look amazing in it." she zipped it up and kissed Shelby's neck lightly. "Are you incapable of dressing yourself?"

"It's more fun when my fiancé helps me," Shelby admitted. "But now I have no time to waste on sex."

"Sex with me is no waste of time, Shelby Corcoran." Cass scolded.

"That's very true," Shelby laughed. "But you know what I meant."

"I'm not sure I do, Miss Corcoran."

"Cassieeee..." Cass breathed in Shelby's neck and Shelby giggled lightly. "I love you but I realllyyyy need to get ready."

"Okay, fine. Get ready for your show. Do I get to do your hair?"

Shelby laughed. "Yes you get to do my hair. Get everyone else in here, I want to talk to my girls."

"Pre-show jitters?" Cass guessed.

"Yeah. I just need to calm down."

"Okay." Cass whispered. She called the girls into the room.

Her fiancé did her hair, Holly did her make up, and Rachel and Santana told her all about what they did that day.

How they had gone to the store and Holly bought them matching star necklaces- Rachel's gold and Santana's silver. How Holly got them ice cream and how they toured the theatre Shelby would be performing in during her other shows throughout the week.

"Look at you being fun Aunt Holly," Shelby laughed.

"DON'T laugh, if you move right now you will make me burn your head, Shelbs." Cass had a straightener dangerously close to Shelby's scalp.

They continued to talk and calm her nerves and Shelby considered herself the luckiest woman alive. To have such an amazing best friend, to have the most fantastic little star as a daughter, to have the most incredible and beautiful woman as her fiancé, to have a basically second daughter with Santana. To have such a great family who was there to support her no matter what.

She was so ready for this performance.

Cassie would never see it coming.

. . .

Shelby finished a beautiful rendition of Silent Night (The cast away party also just so happened to be a Christmas Eve party. It just didn't seem like it because of the lack of snow and the heat) and the audience clapped loudly for her. Once they finished cheering her on, she smiled and said,

"This is really just such a wonderful opportunity. I'm very excited to be on this vacation, and to be singing for all of you. It's a gorgeous Christmas Eve night. But what would make it even more gorgeous..." she paused and scanned the audience for Cassie, Holly, Rachel, and Santana. "Would be if my beautiful family was up here with me. And so, Cassie, Holly, Rachel and Santana will you all come up here and join me, please?"

A hush washed over the crowd as some people whispered something about Cassie meaning "Crazy Cassie July" but after a second the family was up on stage and the audience was clapping loudly and cheering for all of them.

Shelby smiled and took Cassie's hand before pulling the girls towards her and dragging Holly with them. She smiled widely. "Christmas is about loved ones. About family. So I'm going to share my family with you, if that's okay." the audience laughed in agreement. She took Holly by the arm, never letting go of Cassie. "This is my best friend, Holly Holiday. She also may or may not be my Maid of Honor." she raised an eyebrow and Holly said into the mic,

"No pressure," making the audience laugh before Cass took the mic and fake coughed,

"She's MY Maid of Honor."

And Shelby laughed muttering a, "Hush you." and causing the audience to laugh more. Then she pulled Rachel in front of her and kissed her cheek.

"This is our," she motioned to Cassie, "Daughter, Rachel. She's our Little Star. An amazing singer and we're so proud of her." Rachel beamed her mega-watt grin, excited to be on stage and happy that her mommies were proud of her.

"And this," Shelby gestured to Santana and kissed her cheek too. "Is her best friend, Santana Lopez. She's an amazing dancer and we love her very much." it was Santana's turn to grin. She started to realize how much she really loved the spotlight.

"Last but most certainly not least," Shelby pulled Cassie closer to her with her hand and kissed Cassie's hand. "My beautiful, beautiful fiancé, Cassandra July."

Parts of the audience couldn't help but go silent, and Shelby couldn't help but notice.

"Alright look, I heard that silence." she stated. Some people laughed at her oxymoron. "Cassie made a mistake." Cass shot a concerned look in Shelby's direction and Shelby looked back at her, trying to soothe her. Now she spoke to the audience but looked at Cassie. "She made a mistake and she regrets it. Everyone makes mistakes, everyone screws up, because we're all human. And yeah, maybe she's a little crazy."

She smiled lightly at Cassie and Cassie smiled back.

"But you know what? I'm crazy too. Crazy for her. She's my Crazy July and I love her more than life and...and she's mine. And it's unfair that the one big mistake she made defines her entire career. Because she's great. She really is amazing."

There was a stunned silence. From the audience, from the family, from everyone, before Shelby finally said,

"Do you want to show them?" Cass didn't have time to answer before Shelby whispered, "Sing with me, Cassie."

Someone at stage left handed Shelby a second microphone and she held it out to Cassie.

"Please."

The audience, (surprisingly the whole audience) clapped enthusiastically; encouraging her to sing.

"Okay," Cassie whispered with a smile.

The rest of the family moved to backstage right, for the time being. Clearly, Shelby had already been over this with the orchestra, because they struck up a song right away. Shelby started, smiling and taking Cassie's hand, doing a little spin before opening her mouth and singing,

_"L, is for the way you look at me. O is for the only one I see. V is very very very,"_ Cass spun her around and pulled her in as she sang, _"Extraordinary. E, is even more than anyone that you adore."_

_"And love,"_ Cassie continued warmly, dancing around the stage with Shelby, for the first time unafraid of what the people in the audience were thinking. She didn't care if they called her crazy. She didn't care if they mocked her for being with Shelby. She was marrying Shelby and she loved Shelby and she was, in that moment, so, so happy. _"Is all that I can give to you. Love is more than just a game for two. Two in love can make it-take my heart and please don't break it. Love was made for me and you."_

The audience clapped loudly upon hearing her sing; upon watching them dance so gracefully, so majestically together. The key in the song changed and they continued to sweep each other across the stage, so elegantly. As if they had planned it.

When really it was all Cassandra and her fantastic improvisational skills. Improv. Seemed to be her thing.

That was where she and Shelby differed.

It was part of that balance thing Cassie had referred to earlier.

_"L,"_

_"Is for the way you look at me. O."_

_"Is for the only one I see. V."_

_"Is very very, extraordinary. E."_

_"Is even more than anyone that you adore."_

_"And love is all that I can give to you."_ Shelby sang, looking deeply into Cassandra's sparkling blue eyes.

_"Love is more than just a game for two."_ Cassie sang back, staring into Shelby's dazzling emerald eyes.

_"Two in love can make it,"_ Cass spun Shelby out and Shelby grinned wickedly as she paused and then sang,

_"Take my heart and please don't break it,"_ before being spun back in towards her fiancé as they harmonized,

_"Love was made for me and you."_

A standing ovation was what followed. Cassie grinned wildly. She couldn't believe that she was actually getting this-this round of applause, this standing ovation that she didn't think she was ever going to get. In a million years. Ever. But Shelby, the love of her life, had somehow managed to make it happen. She managed to fix the mistake that Cassie had made so many years ago. The one she thought was unfixable. The one she didn't think she'd ever come back from, after years of rejection and ridicule and people just saying no. After years of being Crazy July.

There was no way, Cassie could think, to ever be able to repay Shelby for what she was doing. She was a freaking miracle worker. It was a Christmas Eve miracle. She kissed Shelby warmly and the audience clapped louder.

"I love you, Shelby."

"I love you too, Cassie."

Only on a Broadway cruise, could any of that be considered acceptable, Cassie thought to herself with a laugh.

The rest of the family rejoined them on stage and Shelby said into the mic, "Holly's already told me she doesn't want a solo in the concert tonight, but, I was hoping that maybe Rachel and Santana would sing us a song?" she looked at her daughter(s) with a smile. "How about it girls?"

The two looked absolutely overjoyed. As if Christmas came early. Suppose it sort of had. They nodded hurriedly and the audience laughed at their adorable nature.

"Will you sing us My Favorite Things?" Shelby asked them.

"Yes!" the girls took hands with each other and grinned happily. They were each given a microphone and they sang it as a duet. Meanwhile, Shelby and Holly and Cassie danced around the stage to their performance.

_"Raindrops on roses, and whiskers on kittens,"_

_"Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens,"_

_"Brown paper packages tied up with strings,"_

_"These are a few of my favorite things..."_

Fireworks exploded in breathtaking reds and greens high above them. It was a gorgeous Christmas Eve. The audience loved Rachel and Santana, they accepted Cassie for being Cassie, and Shelby's performance in itself was a success. After which left a very tired family who had to practically drag themselves back to their suite. Rachel and Santana would have fallen asleep in their dresses, if Shelby and Cassie and Holly hadn't tried their hardest to get them into their pj's and tucked warmly into bed.

After which Holly kissed Shelby's cheek, kissed Cassie's cheek, and crashed immediately in her room.

Shelby and Cassie couldn't sleep yet. Shelby dug into the back of the closet and pulled out the presents she had packed for the girls. Cass dropped her jaw at her fiancé.

"For someone who hates surprises, you sure are full of surprises." She struggled with the zipper on her dress and Shelby set the wrapped gifts down on the bed before unzipping her dress for her. Cassie unzipped hers as well.

"It's not all of them, but it was as many as I could fit."

"They'll love it. You're freaking wonder woman, you know that?" Cass grinned tiredly at her lover and found shorts and a tank top to wear. "Do you want help?"

"I can set them out in the living room under the tiny little adorably decorative tree on my own, thanks baby." Shelby laughed lightly, kissing Cassie's forehead. "Get some sleep."

Shelby did put the presents out under the tree. She wrote a letter to the girls signed "Santa", then made her way back to the bedroom, shut the door, and climbed into bed with Cassie, pulling her close and kissing her softly before falling asleep, exhaustedly, against her.

. . .

"Mama! Mommy!" Rachel jumped up and down on the bed Cassie and Shelby were asleep in, as did Santana.

"Shelby, Cassie!" the two girls tried to wake the women.

Holly stood in the doorway, sipping coffee, half awake. The girls had gotten to her first.

"Wake UP!" Rachel pulled a pillow out from under Cassie's head and smacked her with it.

"Santa visits cruise ships!" Santana said excitedly, doing the same to Shelby with her pillow. "Get up!"

"Get UPPP!" Rachel hit Cassie with her pillow again and Cassie woke, grabbing the pillow and hitting Rachel back with a laugh.

"I'm up you crazy little girl." she turned to Shelby and hit Shelby too. "Holly come help us get Shelby up." she laughed.

Holly jumped up onto the bed and grabbed a pillow. Now there were for people attacking Shelby but Shelby was holding strong, stubborn; refusing to give in.

"Shelby," Cass said into her ear. "Come see what Santa got the girls."

"Ughhhhh," Shelby woke grudgingly and said, "Okay okay. Let Mommy and Mama get dressed real quick, okay?"

"Mmmhmm." Holly smirked and got up. "Come on girls, we'll start breakfast since god knows Mama can't cook."

Cassie stuck her tongue out at Holly and she and the girls left so Cass and Shelby could get dressed. With a sigh, Cass sat up in the bed and Shelby stood, making her way to the dresser and opening it, pulling out a little black box of her own that she had bought.

"Wait," she told Cassie softly. She took the ring out of the box-a platinum ring with a single diamond in the middle and two diamonds off to each twisted side. She reached out softly for Cassie's left hand, kissed it softly multiple times, and then slid the ring onto her ring finger.

"I love you." Shelby told her. "I'm excited to marry you because you are the most amazing and wonderful and brave and bad ass and gorgeous woman I've ever met and you were right. I need you and you need me and we balance each other out."

Cassie was stunned, and wide eyed. She hadn't had a single clue that Shelby had gotten her a ring too. With a big smile, she kissed Shelby passionately and whispered, "Weren't you supposed to get down on one knee?" teasingly.

Shelby smiled softly and kissed her again. "Shut up and kiss me you fool." she instructed. Cassie did just that.

"Merry Christmas," she whispered.

"Merry Christmas." Shelby whispered back.

. . .

"Dear Rachel and Santana,

I'm sorry this isn't all of your presents-most of them are at your houses because I didn't realize you were on a cruise until after I had already been there." Rachel read aloud then handed it to Santana so she could finish reading it. The adults exchanged smirks.

"Thank you for being such good girls this year." Santana read. "Thank you for being amazing and for singing with Shelby last night because that really meant a lot to her. Let's please continue to be so good so you can be on the nice list next year, too. Love Santa."

And so the girls opened their presents-Rachel got a lot of gold star things such as sweaters and gloves and a hat and Santana got a lot of dancer things. Including a new leotard.

Shelby sat in Cassie's lap and they both drank coffee to stay awake. Holly sat across from them and did the same. Rachel and Santana sat on the living room floor, opening presents and laughing and throwing wrapping paper at each other.

They were together-one big happy family.

Cassie had finally proposed.

Both women wore engagement rings.

They were having a very warm, very tropical and cruise-ish Christmas.

And things weren't so stressful after all.

And it was definitely the escape that they had needed.

**OH ALSO I DON'T OWN ANY LYRICS USED IN THIS CHAPTER OR ANY OTHER CHAPTER except for when Shelby replaced words in Frere Jacques because she was tired I just threw that out into they abyss BUT OTHER THAN THAT I DON'T OWN LYRICS xD**

**Tell me what you think! Love always, Hayley**


	41. School Shopping?

**No one prompted this, just a little fluff drabble thing I started while trying on clothes while school shopping the other day. (I write EVERYWHERE, I'm telling you) and I'm not sure I expected this to actually go anywhere so much as I knew I wanted some Cassie/Shelby dressing room fluff. So...here you go xD**

**I'm hoping to get a chapter or two done before school tomorrow.**

**If that doesn't happen, try to have a good start of the year, my lovelies. We'll make it through the year together. Stay strong. We got this.**

**Love always, Hayley**

**...**

**School Shopping?**

It was late August.

"Look what came in the mail today!" Cass sing-songed, dancing her way out to Shelby with an envelope in each hand. Shelby smirked at her girlfriend's enthusiasm.

Swaying her hips back and forth, she approached Shelby and handed her the envelope with her name on the front. Shelby pressed the envelope to her lips and smiled.

"Mmm. Paychecks."

"Can we go shoppingggg?" Cass wrapped her arms around Shelby's waist and pulled her close as Shelby did the same. "Doesn't Rachel still need clothes for school? And I could never say no to new clothes..."

"Mmm. I could use a new outfit or two," Shelby agreed. "We could call Holly and have her go with us. And we'll have to bring Santana, since she's already here."

"Ugh can you not be so OCD about things? Shelby, ever the planner. This needs to be a stress free shopping trip. Can we just go?" she snaked her hand down and tapped Shelby's ass, lightly.

Shelby laughed, her body arching forward quickly at the contact, bumping hips with Cass. "Okay, okay. You get the girls and I'll call Holly."

"Deal." Cass grinned and placed a sweet, swift kiss on Shelby's cheek, practically skipping her way to Rachel's room. She knocked on the door and the two seven year olds looked up from what they were doing and at the door. They had been drawing pictures and talking excitedly about any and everything.

"What are you two hooligans up to?" Cass opened the door, accusingly poking her head in the room.

"We're drawing pictures," Santana returned her attention to her paper, nonchalantly.

"Oh?" Cass walked into the room and crouched down next to Rachel, peering over her shoulder to see a drawing of Rachel and Santana on a very large stage. Rachel appeared to be singing and Santana was dancing. "Guess this means you're too busy to go shopping with me and Mommy and Aunt Holly, huh?"

That caught both girls' attention. They perked their heads up and looked at Cassandra, hopefully.

"Shopping? Did you say shopping?" Santana smiled.

"Mmmhmmm." Cass nodded.

Rachel cocked her head to the side, her eyes sparkling with curiosity. "For what?" she wondered.

"Well," Cass pretended to think about it. "Oh, I know, you still have to go get new school clothes, don't you?"

Nodding quickly and now very excited, Rachel started taking care of her drawing stuff and Santana helped.

"Awesome." Cass stood. "Think we could all be ready to go in ten minutes?"

"Yep!" the girls nodded and Cassie smiled. Her Rachel was getting so big so fast. They were already going into second grade. Second grade! She made her way back out to where Shelby was on the phone with Holly in the living room.

"Hey you, we got our paychecks, want to come shopping with us and the girls?" she said into the phone.

Hol was on speaker. "So you can completely blow all your new money?" she laughed. "Totally there. Meet me at Central Park?"

"Deal. Twenty minutes."

"Only twenty?!" Hol gasped into the phone in protest.

"Run," Cassie suggested from behind Shelby. With a laugh, Shelby ended the call and spun around.

"You ready to go?" she asked.

"Yeah."

"Are the girls?"

As if on cue, both girls ran out towards the women, looking excited. They loved school shopping. "Ready!" Santana announced.

And so off they went.

They went from store to store. Rachel tried on at least fifteen pairs of jeans before she found two that she liked. They bought Santana a new dance leotard and a first-day-of-school dress that she carried all throughout the store in admiration.

They made it to one of Shelby and Cassie and Holly's favorite stores and walked inside. Shelby's eyes widened in excitement as she saw the most gorgeous black dress. It was sexy, a touch of lace made a v neck. It was sultry, one sleeve went off the shoulder and the zipper was low. It was professional and it was also so non-professional that it was genius.

She looked over at Cassie hopefully. A pleading, "Can I try it on?" made it out of her mouth. Cass grinned devilishly.

"I'll help you zip it."

With a blush, Shelby turned and looked at Holly. "Will you watch the girls for us?"

Holly grinned. "Go my good women, go."

"Can we afford this?" Shelby asked once she and Cassie were behind a closed door. She stripped down to her bra and panties and Cass eyed her up and down, wetting her lips. "We'll make room in the budget."

She wasn't even looking at the dress. Shelby laughed lightly and smacked Cass's abs-a love tap.

"Help me get this on," she smiled, pulling the dress up over her hips. Cass moved her hands lightly to get the sleeves up over her shoulders, leaving kisses where her fingers trailed. "We can't do this here," Shelby whispered in warning.

"We're not doing anything," Cass complained. "Let loose."

"Zip up the dress," Shelby laughed against Cassie, who had pressed herself up against Shelby's back as she zipped the dress. Cass put her head on Shelby's shoulder and looked at the both of them in the mirror.

"You're so beautiful, Shelby." Cassie whispered to her.

Shelby tilted her neck back and Cassie kissed it softly.

"I'm not," Shelby said modestly.

"You ARE." Cassie insisted. "So beautiful. You know," she wrapped her arms around Shelby's waist and Shelby placed her hands around Cassie's hands as she continued. "When we were in college, and I had a crush on you, I would pray to god that some night you would just get so drunk that you'd let me kiss you, or hold you, or lie in bed with you. Or...that you'd change in front of me." Cassie laughed, clearly slightly embarrassed, and Shelby laughed lightly with her. "Because you are so just..stunning. And perfect. And wonderful. And I don't deserve you. But alas, now you are mine. It's astounding to me."

"Oh, Cassie," Shelby smiled. "I've always thought the same thing about you."

They looked into each others eyes, warmly, and smiled.

"So you're getting this dress," Cass decided after a pause. "Because you're very sexy and so fucking gorgeous and it fits you beautifully and you deserve it and I knowww how badly you want it," she scrunched her nose and nestled it into Shelby's neck, tickling Shelby and making her move back with a laugh.

"Okay. As long as I get to help you try something on, too."

"Deal," Cass grinned and Shelby redressed into her clothes.


	42. A Day Out

**I know this was prompted forever ago but I finally got around to it. On a roll today. Trying to get as much out as I can before school tomorrow.**

**One more chapter tonight that I know for sure of.**

**Love you all! Love always, Hayley**

**zdw0002: Hi! Could you do a oneshot of Rach and Cassie bonding. Maybe having a day out at the park or even at the supermarket. Something simple that just shows that Cassie is her mother, too.**

**A Day Out**

"Shelbs!" Cass called from the kitchen to the living room. She had been going through the fridge looking for something to eat. She had found nothing. She was starving. "I'm going grocery shopping, write me a list?"

"On it," Shelby was in the living room, curled up in a chair, reading. She marked her page and grabbed the notebook and pen off of the side table next to her. "What do we really need?"

"Any and everything, I'm starved." Cass put her hands in her back jean pockets and walked into the living room, biting her lip.

Shelby laughed lightly. "You want me to make you something?"

"No," Cassie muttered, staring at the ground stubbornly.

"Well maybe if you would let me teach you how to cook..."

"I don't need to learn how to cook," Cass cut in, still mumbling.

"How the hell did you survive without me?"

"I dunno." Cassie shrugged. "Will you just write the damn list?"

Shelby laughed at Cassie's adorable inability to use a stove and got to writing her a list. Meanwhile, Cassie made her way to Rachel's room.

The five year old was listening to the Funny Girl soundtrack. For the billionth time.

"...When he takes me in his arms, the world is bright, alright." Rachel sang along with it-it was one of the only things she knew every single word to.

"What's the difference if I say, I'll go away?" Cassie cut in, standing at her doorway and singing with her. "When I know I'll come back on my knees someday. For whatever my man is, I am his forever more."

"Mama?" Rachel asked, confused but with a smile. She turned off her CD player. "Funny Girl isn't your favorite." she pointed out.

Cassie laughed. "I know panda-boo. But I still like it. And because I'm in love with Mommy, I have to listen to it all the time anyways, so I still know all the words."

"Oh." Rachel grinned.

"So I'm going to go to the store. You wanna come with me?"

"Just you and me?" Rachel smiled. Cassie worked during the week so she and Rachel didn't often get to do a whole lot just the two of them. Even if it was something as simple as going to the grocery store.

"Just you and me, kid," Cass smiled lightly.

"Okay!" Rach jumped up from her sitting position on the floor and took her Mama's hand, happily.

"Well I'm glad you're excited," Cass took squeezed her little girl's hand and said, "Get a jacket, okay? We're gonna go in a few minutes."

"Okay." Rach got her favorite jacket off of the end of her bed and put it on and Cass went back out to the living room to retrieve the list Shelby was holding out.

She scanned it. "There is nothing good on this list," Cass complained.

"It's healthy," Shelby insisted.

"It's boring and I'm starving." Cass rolled her eyes, folding the list up and putting it in her back pocket. "Rachie, let's go!" she called out.

"You know, you really shouldn't shop when you're hungry..."

"Then I'll take Rachel to lunch." Cass kissed her cheek. "Take a day. Read a book. Sing a song. Do something. We'll be back."

"By dinner?" Shelby hoped.

"Will it be healthy?" Cass challenged.

"Probably?"

"Hmm. Then probably won't be home for dinner." Cass joked.

Shelby tilted her head to the side. "Oh come on," she deadpanned.

"We'll be home by 4, mother." Cass rolled her eyes, kissing her cheek again.

Shelby kissed her back. "I love you."

"Love you too."

Rachel bounced out to the living room, hugged and kissed her Mommy goodbye, and took Cassie's hand after Cassie put on her jacket and they walked out the door and down the street.

"So where do you want to eat, Rach?" she asked her daughter.

"I get to choose?" Rachel widened her eyes.

Cass nodded slowly. "As long as you don't make me regret it." she giggled at her daughter's enthusiasm.

A fast wind swept across the two of them, chilling them. Autumn was coming on hard and soon. Rach pulled Cassie closer for warmth and comfort. She loved doing things with her Mommy but she loved doing things with her Mama, too.

"Can we get...pizza?" Rachel asked . "And milkshakes!"

"Milkshakes?" Cassie laughed, picking Rachel up and carrying her on her hip. "You MUST be my daughter. It's freezing outside and you want milkshakes?!"

"And pizza!" Rachel reminded her, her brown hair sweeping in the wind and momentarily blinding Cassie. Cass moved Rachel's hair back with a smile.

"And pizza." she said. "Okay. Let's go get pizza."

"And milkshakes."

"You're silly."

"You're starving," Rachel reminded her. For a five year old she could be pretty condescending. She learned from the best.

After buying their slices of pizza, Cass walked them, Rachel still in her arm carrying her own slice, to Central Park. They sat at a table and ate their pizza slices. Rachel laughed when a piece of cheese was too stringy and Cassie almost wore a pizza facial.

"You think that's funny, huh?" Cassie scrunched her nose at her. "You think everything's funny."

"Nuh uhh!"

"Uh huh!"

"Nuh uh!" Rach took another bite of pizza. "How come Mommy never lets us get pizza?"

Cass almost started choking when she started laughing. "Because Mommy is a health freak and doesn't like eating greasy things. She likes to keep her figure."

"But you eat greasy pizza and you're still skinny," Rach pointed out, swallowing another bite. She was covered in pizza sauce and Cass smiled softly, taking a napkin to Rachel's face. Rach scrunched her nose and turned her head to the side when Cassie did so before adding, "Mommy's skinny too."

"I'm a dancer, sweetheart, I'm always working out, and Mommy has a physical trainer as well as eating healthy."

"Oh." Rachel finished her pizza and grinned. "Can we get milkshakes now?"

Cass laughed. "Someone's anxious."

"Someone likes milkshakes!" Rach laughed.

With an eye roll, smile, and shake of her head, Cassie took her little girl's hand, threw away their paper plates, and walked them to where they could get milkshakes.

"You're a strawberry girl, aren't you?" Cass looked down at her daughter, questioning.

Rachel bobbed her head up and down quickly in response and Cass ordered a small strawberry milkshake for Rachel and a small chocolate milkshake for herself. They sipped on them as they walked down the sidewalk of the busy New York streets. Rachel never let go of her Mama's hand.

"I thought we were going shopping?" Rachel wondered.

"Well, we're supposed to be." Cass laughed softly. "And we will, once we're done with our milkshakes."

And they did. They went to the grocery store and Cassie pushed Rachel in the cart. She let her sit in the back of it, which she thoroughly enjoyed. She giggled as Cassie pushed her down the canned foods aisle. "Faster, Mama! Faster!" she laughed.

"Rachie, it's not a race," Cass told her with a light laugh. "I can't run down the aisle!"

"Uh huhh!" Rach smiled up at her.

"Well," Cass put a can of pineapple in the cart and crossed it off the list. "We're about done here, panda-boo."

"Oh," Rachel's face fell slightly. "Does that mean you'll be busy all week at work again?"

This gave Cassie pause. Had she been too busy with work? She knew that she and Rachel didn't often get a lot of alone time. She stopped the cart again and looked at Rachel, sadly. "Rach," she picked her baby girl up out of the cart and hugged her tightly. "I do have to work during the week, but honey, I come home every night. I will always, ALWAYS have time for you, okay? I promise."

"Can we do something next weekend?" Rachel wondered, hugging her Mama tightly and not wanting to ever let go.

This was breaking Cassandra's heart-she never wanted to let go either.

"Of course, sweetie. We'll figure something out to do next weekend, okay? I love you sooooo much." she tickled Rachel's sides and Rachel giggled.

"I love you sooooo much too," she clung to her Mama's neck and Cassie decided to just carry her, continuing to push the cart forward.

"I will never be too busy for you, Rachel."

"You promise?" chocolate brown eyes looked curiously into deep blue ones.

Cassie kissed her little girl's forehead warmly.

"I promise, panda-boo. I promise."


	43. Double, Double Toil and Trouble

**baxterj: Would love to see San and Rach cause a little trouble lol maybe at the next sleepover :)**

**A/N: Thanks to my Lexie for giving me the makeup idea.**

**SDLS, Double Double Toil and Trouble**

"Hi!" Santana said excitedly to Shelby and Cassie as she walked through their front door with an overnight bag. The six year old looked overjoyed that it was her turn to stay over at Rachel's house.

"Hi," Shelby laughed, letting her in.

"Hi," Maribel smiled at Shelby. "Just dropping her off, I have a work thing I need to get to. Thank you again."

"No problem," Shelby smiled. "We're going to have fun."

"If she's any trouble at all-"

"She'll be fine," Shelby reassured her. "We'll be great."

"Okay," Maribel smiled, kissed the top of Santana's head, told her goodbye, and left.

Shelby took a deep breath and smiled down at Santana, whom was tackle hugged by Rachel as soon as she was in the apartment. The two girls were practically inseparable. No matter what. And sleepovers just so happened to be their new favorite thing.

"Okay what do you girls plan on doing?" Shelby wondered. "Do you want to watch a movie or draw pictures or...?"

"Can we watch Frozen?" Santana suggested.

"Yes!" Rachel squealed happily, staring up imploringly at Shelby. "Can we, Mommy?"

"Of course," Shelby kissed Rachel's forehead. "I'll set it up in the living room. And I'll sit out there with you, but I have some things to catch up on for work, okay?"

The girls nodded happily and Shelby put in Frozen. The little girls sat on the floor cross legged and sang every word to every song and watched, intently. Meanwhile, Shelby booted up her laptop and logged into her email, answering questions from some of her online students and grading music tests.

Once the movie was over, Shelby was sick of staring at key signatures and she took off her reading glasses, shutting her laptop for a break. She massaged her temples, a strong headache was coming on.

"Hey, girls," she piped up. "Why don't you go play in Rachel's room for a little while? I'm going to start making dinner, okay?"

"Okay!" they didn't seem to mind their change of scenery.

"Will Mama be home soon?" Rachel wondered.

"Where's your Mama?" Santana asked.

"She's at work, sweetie," Shelby explained. "She should be home in about an hour, Rach."

"Okay." the girls ran off to Rachel's bedroom.

Shelby walked slowly to the kitchen and opened up the cupboard, swallowing an aspirin. She loved her students, she loved her work. But she could not for the life of her grade one more test tonight. Her eyes hurt. But guess what? She was only a fourth of the way done.

While Shelby filled a pot with water and got it boiling on the stove, Rachel and Santana sat on Rachel's bed, trying to figure out what they were going to do.

"I know!" Santana's eyes lit up. "Let's put on a fashion show!"

"Okay!" Rachel agreed with a grin. She loved putting on fashion shows with Santana. Sometimes Kurt and Jesse would play with them and Jesse would judge. "But all of my dress up clothes are boring." she sighed. "Let's go try on Mommy and Mama's dresses."

"Won't we get into trouble for that?" Santana worried. She didn't want to make Shelby or Cassie upset.

Rachel grinned a devilish little grin. "Not if they don't find out." she whispered.

Santana grinned mischievously back at her and took her hand. Together they ran down the hallway and into Shelby and Cassie's room, shutting the door tightly behind them. As long as they didn't get caught, they were going to have the best fashion show ever.

. . .

"Honey, I'm home." Cassie risked sounding cliché as she walked through the front door, tossing keys onto the counter as she found Shelby cooking in the kitchen.

Shelby had her laptop propped up on the island/bar they ate at, a mug of tea next to it. She had her black rectangle framed glasses halfway down her eyes, peering through them for a moment to grade a test, then over them to stir a pot full of spaghetti noodles.

"You seem busy." Cass pressed her lips together tightly.

"Not extremely. Just a little..."

"Preoccupied?"

"Something like that."

"Where's Rachel?"

"She and Santana are in her room, as far as I know." Shelby finished grading another test and looked up at her girlfriend, taking her glasses off and setting them off to the side. "Welcome home." she sighed.

"Thanks." Cassie pecked her on the lips and Shelby kissed back. "You okay?" Cass wondered as she walked over to the pot on the stove and peered into it to see what she would be eating for dinner.

"Headache," Shelby mumbled. "I'll be fine. Will you get the girls for dinner, please?"

"Okay."

. . .

For the past 20 minutes, the girls had been trying on one of Cassie's black dresses and one of Shelby's purple ones. They felt all grown up and excited and it was exciting to be doing something they knew they probably shouldn't be doing. Although they were a little concerned about getting caught.

Rachel sat down at Shelby's vanity, finding some of her makeup. She had watched her mommies put on makeup before and thought she could probably do it on her own. And if she washed it off before they saw they wouldn't know, right?

She got out eyeliner and closed one eye, starting to draw a line across her eye lid. She thought it was perfect.

Santana helped her with lipstick and Rachel found some mascara to put on Santana's eyelashes. It accidentally got below her eye.

"Uh oh," Rachel giggled. "Maybe we should go wash this off."

"Who wins the fashion show?" Santana wondered.

"Um...me?" Rachel tried.

"No fair!" Santana dropped her jaw. "Your Mama's dress so wins!"

"Okay so MAYYYBE it's a tie," Rachel giggled and Santana giggled back.

"Come on, let's go to the bathroom and get this off." They took off the dresses and left them on the bed. They would be back anyways.

. . .

Cass walked down the hallway and into Rachel's room, expecting to see two little girls dancing around or something. Instead she found an empty room. She frowned, slightly, and walked out, back towards the living room. "Girls?" she called.

"Are they not in Rachel's room?" Shelby asked from the kitchen, wiping her hands on a towel and walking towards Cass.

"No, the room was empty."

"Hmm." Shelby put her hands on her hips and let out a long breath. "Well they're here somewhere. Let's go find them."

"I'm afraid to know what they're up to."

"Ohhh boy..." Shelby walked towards their room and Cassie headed towards the bathroom. Shelby found the room messed up. Well, to Shelby it was messed up, since she was OCD about cleanliness. Her vanity had makeup strewn all over it and her bed was covered in dresses.

"Oh dear god." she leaned on the bed frame and sighed.

"Shelby," Cassie called. "I uh...I found the girls..."

Tilting her head back with a long drawn out breath, Shelby walked into the bathroom.

. . .

Rachel had a washcloth to her face and hadn't heard her Mama walk in. When she looked up in the mirror she dropped the wash cloth and screamed. "Mama!"

"What the hell are you doing?" Cassie's eyes widened, concerned, but she unintentionally let out a laugh at the scene. The little six year olds had dear in the headlights looks on their faces and them getting caught was actually kind of cute.

"We um...uh..." Santana put her own washcloth down and very slowly stepped down from the stool she and Rachel were using to reach the sink.

"We were putting on a fashion show?" Rachel said it like a question.

Cassie let out a groan and a half laugh.

"Shelby," she called out. "I uh...I found the girls..."

Shelby walked into the bathroom and let out a gasp.

"What in god's name-"

"They were putting on a fashion show," Cassie caught her up to speed.

"Oh, okay that makes it all better." Shelby said sarcastically, hands on her hips in that you-are-in-trouble-and-you-know-it way.

She eyed Rachel and Santana, admittedly looking very adorable and for the first time not so innocent completely covered in black and red makeup. She raised her eyebrows and said slowly,

"I can see you found my make up."

"Are you mad?" Rachel asked, worriedly. She knew she shouldn't have done what she did, but she and Santana had just wanted to have a grown up fashion show. Because her mommies were always so pretty in their dresses and make up and she wanted to be so pretty too.

"Go out to the kitchen girls, dinner is on the table." Shelby said sternly.

"Does that mean yes?" Santana wondered.

Shelby resolved to raising one eyebrow, which the girls knew to take as a "do as I say RIGHT now" look. A "before you get into more trouble than you already are" look.

They scurried off to the kitchen and sat up at the counter.

"I think your Mommy's mad," Santana whispered.

"Maybe not too mad?" Rachel hoped.

"I hope not..."

Cassie and Shelby stayed back in the bathroom, cleaning up the counter and putting the wash clothes in the dirty clothes hamper in the corner, moving the stool back to it's place under the sink.

"They were just having a little fun, Shelby."

"I know. And they know what they did was wrong."

"Are you mad?" Cass asked.

"Not really. That was sort of adorable. But they need to know that wasn't okay."

"Ah. I think they know that. So you're going to pretend you're mad." Cass nodded with a small smile. "You're sneaky and unfair. They fear you. "

" I know." Shelby smiled softly. " It's so fair. If one of your dresses ends up ripped don't come crying to me." and with that Shelby walked back into the kitchen, swaying her hips in a businesslike way as she walked.

Cassie rolled her eyes and followed.

The little girls ate their dinner quietly, expecting Shelby to scold them for what they had done. They had been super careful with the dresses! So maybe they had jumped on the bed a little bit, but they didn't BREAK anything per se.

Once they finished eating they stayed up at the counter in silence. Cass was starting to think she could get used to silence.

Shelby started with the dishes and Cass took over.

Meanwhile the two little girls looked up at Shelby, guiltily. The brunette had her hands on her hips and had an eyebrow raised. She was very intimidating.

"Now I know you girls knew what you were doing was going to get you into trouble if you got caught-"

"Well we were kind of hoping we weren't going to get caught," Santana said softly.

Cass put the back of her hand to her mouth to cover a laugh. Shelby reached out and smacked Cassie upside the head, muttering a, "Don't you encourage them."

"We're sorry Mommy." Rachel said.

"We won't do it again!" Santana widened her eyes. "Honest!"

"I know you won't, sweetheart." Shelby kissed the top of Rachel's head then kissed the top of Santana's. "You need to build my trust back up with you . You know what you did was wrong." she said it sternly but with a kind heart.

"We know, Mommy." Rachel said. "We were REALLY careful with your dresses! We're sorry."

"It's okay, my sweet girl." Shelby told her. "Next time you want to do a fashion show, use your own clothes." she warned. "And no more make up till you're grown up."

"Okay." the girls said in unison.

"Run along to Rachel's room and play. Stay out of my and Cassie's room, please."

"Yes, ma'am." they answered and ran to Rachel's room , admittedly scared and feeling unusually lucky that they didn't get in more trouble than they had.

Cassie spun around, drying the last dish and putting it away, giving Shelby a look . "You are going to traumatize those poor girls."

"I was much nicer than I could have been." Shelby defended. "Someone needs to instill a bit of fear into them. They need to know they can't do anything they please."

"You're moody today." Cassie noted, wrapping an arm around her. "On your period?"

Shelby huffed. "Me being on my period has nothing to do with me being a little stern with the girls." she defended.

"Mmhmm. I agree, but are you?"

"Maybe."

"Mmm. Do I need to cuddle you and melt some chocolate chips?"

"I have work to finish," Shelby said softly.

"Do you need me to cuddle you and melt some chocolate chips?" Cassie repeated, giving Shelby a soft kiss on the cheek.

"Yes please." Shelby whispered.

"Okay." Cassie did just that.

And the two little troublemakers didn't DARE do something else they knew they shouldn't. The look that Shelby had given them was punishment enough. Even though they knew they were forgiven. They weren't going to touch Rachel's mommies' make up or dresses again.


	44. Welcome to NYADA, Pt5

**Another installment of Welcome to NYADA for you, my lovelies.**

**Thanks so much to keeperofwords for helping me out with some of the details of this chapter. :)**

**Started this the other day after school and decided to finish up the last few paragraphs tonight before starting to get things ready for school tomorrow.**

**Tell me what you think and I love you all!**

**Love always, Hayley**

**Welcome to NYADA Pt.5**

Three weeks after the kiss that Cassandra and Shelby had shared and Cass was still avoiding her. Well, as much a girl could avoid her roommate. Neither woman particularly loved this situation, but Shelby didn't question it, focusing on her studies, and Cassie didn't speak to her, on the account of avoiding her.

Shelby walked around the dorm, hands on her hips, warming her voice up.

"I am a shining star...

I am a shining star...

I am a shining star..."

she went further and further up the scale, trying to take her mind off of Cassandra-something she just couldn't seem to do.

The night before, Cassie had come in late, with a guy. She looked absolutely terrified, but she ignored Shelby completely and let him kiss on her until late into the morning.

Cassie justified this in her mind with a simple fact: If Shelby didn't exist, neither did the kiss or the crush. If she let the guys kiss her, maybe her feelings for Shelby could go away completely. And maybe if this happened in front of Shelby, Shelby would understand this as well. Of course this never worked. No matter how many times she tried.

And she was about to just give up on her theory and talk to Shelby again. She missed hearing Shelby's voice, her laugh that sounded a little more like a cackle but was too adorable to continue ignoring, her smooth singing when she was studying without realizing she was doing it.

She missed Shelby rolling her eyes at her. She missed helping her study.

Shelby missed everything about Cassandra. Shelby Corcoran was all about getting attention and absolutely loathed being ignored. Especially by Cassie July. She kept thinking maybe it was her fault. That she just shouldn't have kissed her...but...

All she really wanted to do was kiss her again. And again. And again.

But the fact that Cassandra was pretending it didn't happen at all, was not making that any easier to do.

Shelby just didn't understand. She knew they hadn't kissed each other the wrong way, and they sure as hell both thoroughly enjoyed doing so, so what the hell was the problem?

Although she would admit herself that it felt weird. There was a part of her telling her it was wrong-that she didn't like Cassie like that.

But she did. Oh...she so did.

And she wanted her back.

She scolded herself. She wasn't supposed to be thinking about Cassandra.

"I am a shining star...

I am a shining star..."

she could only do one more key up before cracking.

"I am a shining star..."

She had her back to the door but Cassie opened it, alone this time, and eyed Shelby up and down slowly. She looked down at Shelby's feet, her eyes grazed Shelby's finely toned legs, landed on her perfectly rounded ass, then continued to look up Shelby's spine, which you could practically see through her shirt. Her eyes landed on Shelby's neck, which she SO wanted to be kissing, and trailed up to see her perfectly naturally wavy chocolate brown hair, which cascaded so beautifully down her back.

"You are." Cassie said softly to her. She knew she shouldn't have, but she couldn't resist and felt horrible for not talking to her for 3 weeks.

Shelby spun around, surprised. She hadn't heard the door open. Instead of saying what she really wanted to, which was, "You scared the hell out of me." she said, "Oh, so you CAN speak. I was starting to get worried." in the most sarcastic tone she could muster.

"You're pissed at me," Cassandra concluded, shutting the door and throwing her key onto her bed. "I get it. I do. And I'm sorry. But no matter how much I might want to kiss you again, I can't do it."

Confused and slightly amused, Shelby said, "Oh, so you're admitting now that you want to kiss me again? Along with speaking to me for once? How drunk are you?"

"Pretty drunk," Cassandra admitted, moving her key off of her bed and onto the floor before lying down and putting her hands on her forehead. "Apparently drunk enough to accidentally admit stuff, but sober enough to realize what I'm saying to you. I didn't mean what I just said about wanting to kiss you-"

"You didn't mean to say it. But you meant it." Shelby said softly, turning the light off and lying down on her own bed. It was 11:30 and she had early classes. But Cassie was finally talking to her again and she was too tired and too wired to sleep. She pulled the blankets up over her and sighed.

"Why the hell were you warming your voice up so late at night?" Cass tried changing the subject.

"More importantly, why can't you kiss me?"

Cass raised her eyebrow. "Do you really want me to?" she couldn't resist asking; her curiosity getting the better of her. She hadn't realized just HOW MUCH Shelby had enjoyed it.

"Of course you ignorant fool!" Shelby sat up in her bed and glared at Cass from across the room. Not that Cass could see it, with the lights off, but she could feel it. "I mean," Shelby continued, feeling outspoken and crass. "I don't know what I want. One minute I think I want you and the next I don't think it's right, and I...I really need to focus on my classes..."

"Do you ever not study, Corcoran?! Get your head out of the damn books, this is real life and it's scary!" Cassandra's heart was pounding wildly. For once being drunk couldn't seem to calm her down.

"I KNOW THAT." Shelby was so frustrated. She was top of everything. Top of the class, winner of first place in every competition. She won all the time.

But she couldn't win the battle going on inside her own head.

Cassandra, for one of the first times since Shelby had met her, sans the past few weeks, went speechless. She wasn't expecting Shelby to yell. She thought Shelby was totally calm...like all the time. She always just seemed so...organized. So together.

"Maybe we should just try it." Cass said quietly. Wait, what? What the hell am I saying, we can't do that! Part of her mind was driving her away from the idea.

But the other part...

Shelby was shell-shocked. "Is this the drunk talking or are you being serious?" her heart actually skipped a beat, surprising her more. She was under the impression that only happened in things like books and movies.

After a moment of silence; a moment of trying to overpower one side of her mind, Cass said, "I'm...I'm being serious."

"You hesitated. I'm not going to be your experiment, Cassandra." Shelby already knew what THAT felt like. And she didn't like it. At all.

"I'm not asking you to. I'm asking you to be my girlfriend." Cassandra rolled her eyes. Sometimes the brunette could be so...stubborn. So confusingly, relentlessly mind boggling.

Shelby stood and stormed over to the light switch, flipping it on and walking over to Cassie, who sat up in her bed.

"You're asking me to what?!" her emotions were all over the place. Things were moving so fast now and though one half of her wanted, more than anything, to be with Cassie. Part of her screamed that it was so so SO very right, and was so excited to try it. But the other part of her was screaming how wrong it would be. That was the part that her parents had instilled in her.

Cassie's parents were a strong part of her fear as well.

"I...Okay here's the thing, Corcoran. I've never liked a woman before. Ever. Not in real life anyways. I mean there was a time when I thought I might..." she trailed off, not wanting to go to that bad place in her mind, and continued, "But then I meet you and I...I get so fucking confused about everything...You confuse me, Corcoran. But you also intrigue me and it feels...well when I'm not thinking about it, it feels amazing. Like we could really be something, you know? Shit, I don't know why I'm telling you all of this. I usually just bottle things up, I don't talk about emotions..." she bit her lip, (and god, did Shelby think it was sexy), and looked down at her lap.

"Neither do I." Shelby spoke up, pressing her lips together.

Cassie moved over and Shelby sat next to her.

"But, Cassandra..."

Cass looked over at Shelby and Shelby bore her eyes into hers.

"Cassie," her voice warmed and she slid her hand onto Cassandra's knee (her legs were crossed). Cassandra's body reacted in a way she was begging it not to. Because if it did that meant that all of this was real. It was that reaction she had been trying and failing desperately to get with all of those guys.

"I...I really like you. And it's destroying me. I can tell it's destroying both of us. So...maybe you're right. Maybe we should try something. Maybe...we should try being together. But I'm scared. I am NEVER scared, but damn it, I'm scared."

With a nod, Cass replied, "I know the feeling. But we shouldn't go public either." going public would be...well if they did so while they were both in the confused state they were in, it could damn well be dangerous.

"No." Shelby agreed. "No we shouldn't."

"Would we be exclusive? Or are we just...testing waters...? Shelby I don't know what to make of this, and I'm not positive that you do either."

With a deep breath, Shelby shook her head. "No, you're right. What are we thinking?"

"We're not. I'm drunk and you're tired. Maybe we just need to get some sleep. Maybe we'll make better decisions in the morning."

Shelby eyed Cassie carefully. For someone so drunk she was being pretty logical.

She supposed she was used to it-the drinking. Shelby had never seen her without some sort of alcohol. Besides the day they met, when she was drinking coffee. Shelby scoffed at the memory-for all she knew, Cassie spiked that coffee after walking out of Starbucks.

Giving up, Shelby nodded slowly. "You're right."

Sighing, Shelby got up from Cassie's bed and made to get back in her own. It took all Cass had in her not to ask her to stay. She had almost ALMOST mustered the words "Please stay with me." but refrained from it.

It was for the best, anyways.

They fell asleep, reluctantly. Neither ones' mind wanted to stop running long enough to let them actually rest, and Cassandra's night was accompanied with dreams.

To her horror, dreams about Shelby.

. . .

_Cass was in the studio, practicing ballet. Suddenly Shelby was in the doorway, dressed in a black leotard and fishnets, her long brown hair in waves cascading down her shoulders. Cass couldn't see this yet, because most of the room was darkened. She smiled, softly, and walked up to Cassandra. Cass sucked in a short breath. Shelby was dazzling as she stepped into the light._

_A single mirror stood in front of the two of them. A spotlight on them, the barre off to the side, and then nothing. Just a dark room. Besides that one spot of light, shining down like a dome around them. Like a dome of protection. Like all of their emotions and feelings could be expressed in that room alone._

_A shiver went down Cassandra's back when Shelby slid her hand slowly up Cassie's arm and brought her lips to the blonde's ear, whispering, "Teach me how to dance, Cassandra."_

_With a dry swallow, Cassandra pulled Shelby in front of her. Shelby took control of Cassandra's hands, moving them over her stomach, resting them on her body. Cass's heart pounded and Shelby pressed her back up against her. Inhaling, Cassandra nearly melted. Shelby smelled so good. She had her own scent. Like rain and lavender. _

_They moved intimately around the room. A leader and her follower._

_Shelby's touch made Cassandra swoon._

_Slowly, seductively, Shelby placed her lips to Cassandra's, pulling back slightly, making the blonde want more._

. . .

Cass woke up practically panting, her eyes wide as she realized, with a sense of dread, feeling, and a serious want, that there might actually be some deep chemistry between her and her roommate.

And she wasn't quite sure what to make of that.


	45. First Words

**Hello my lovelies.**

**I'm so sorry it's been so long since the last update (and I will apologize in advance for this one being so short because I know it's been forever). Been swamped with school and when I'm not doing that I have cheerleading and when I'm not doing that I'm trying to let some of my other writing babies have a chance to grow as well. I'm also getting over a sickness (Finally. I haven't been able to sing in a whole freaking week. :/ but that's beside the point)...**

**But I couldn't get this cute little thought out of my head today and decided I needed to write it.**

**It might not be EXACTLY how I pictured, but I couldn't stop smiling writing it, and I hope it makes you smile as well, all the same.**

**Love always, Hayley**

**ComplexStatus: Shelby/Cassie teach baby Rachel first word**

**Born2Try: The first time Rachel said Mommy or Mama…maybe Mama as the first word to form a tighter bond with Cassie.**

**First Words**

It was late fall. Colored leaves on the trees in Central Park had long past fallen to the ground, and crisp autumn winds blew outside, practically rattling the windows of Shelby's apartment. Cassie sat on the floor, her legs spread into a V, with a little 10 month old Rachel crawling around between them.

"Rayyyy—chel…" Cass drug out the pronunciation of her little girl's name. The baby looked up at her, and made a sound that Cassie qualified as a laugh. "Rayyy-chel…" she repeated.

Baby Rachel put a hand on Cassie's right leg to hold herself up as she tried to grab for Cassie's waist. Cass put her hands around her little girl and lifted her with a laugh. The baby laughed back.

"Rayyyy-chel! Can you say Mama?" she asked her little daughter as she brought her back down into her lap. Rachel fought her Mama to try to get back on the floor—she wanted to crawl by herself again.

Cassie fulfilled the little girl's request and she resumed her crawling, making unintelligible noises with her voice, and melting her Mama's heart.

Shelby, who had been starting dinner in the kitchen, made her way out to the living room to find the two most important girls in her life just chilling and having a blast on the living room floor. She shrugged, cold, in her sweater, and sat down behind Cass, laying her legs against the side of hers, so that they were now _both_ encasing Rachel in a V. She wrapped her arms around Cassie's waist and grinned at Rachel.

"Hello my baby!" she said to her daughter, happily. "Hello!"

Rachel grinned and giggled at her Mommy.

"I have soup warming up on the stove," Shelby told Cassie.

Cass nodded. "Okay. It's freezing."

"It's autumn." Shelby reminded her with a laugh as Rachel tried to stand and stumbled, laughing at her misstep. Cassie held one hand out and Shelby held out another for their little girl to grab onto. She did so, gleefully.

"It's almost winter." Cassie complained. "Brr."

Rachel giggled again. That little girl was always giggling.

"Rayyyy-chel!" Cassie smiled widely at her.

"Rachie!" Shelby laughed as Rachel shook her head from side to side quickly, making constant noise with her mouth. Shelby and Cassie liked to think that when she did this, she was trying to sing.

"Can you say Mama?" Cassie repeated herself from earlier.

Rachel let out a little squeal and laughed again.

Shelby and Cassie could not believe how incredibly adorable their daughter was. It warmed their hearts. Warmed every part of their bodies, which seconds ago had been freezing.

"Can you say Mama?" Shelby tried. "Say Mama, Rachie!"

"Maaaaa!" Rachel shrieked.

Shelby laughed. "Say Maaaa-maaa." She slowed the word down and pressed her face against Cassie's, smiling at Rachel.

"Maaaaaa…" Rachel continued to smile.

"Maaa-maaa." Cassie tried this time.

"Maaaa-maaa." Rachel mimicked. She grinned even more widely this time, as if recognizing her own accomplishment. "Maaa-maaa!" she repeated.

Cassie's heart nearly burst. Rachel had said her first word. And it had been Mama.

Shelby and Cassie grinned so widely it hurt and Rachel repeated, faster this time, "Mamaaa!"

"That's right, Rachel!" Cassie congratulated her, picking her up into her arms and peppering her with kisses. "I'm your Mama." The realization struck down on her with such deep pride and excitement that she could barely contain it. "I am, baby. I'm your Mama."

Shelby watched, so proud of her little girl, and so thrilled. She was slightly sad that she was growing so fast—already saying first words!—but her delight and enjoyment of the moment overthrew her sadness. She was happy that her first word was Mama instead of Mommy. Shelby had given birth to her, and she knew that Cassie sometimes felt left out—that Rachel had a stronger connection with Shelby than with her. But maybe now, Cassie would recognize that her bond with Rachel was stronger than she thought. That her first word had been Mama instead of Mommy for a reason. Because she was Rachel's mother too.

"Mama," Rachel said again, being hugged and kissed by Cassie. "Mama."

Cassandra couldn't be happier than in that moment. Her little girl had said "Mama" as her first word. Her little girl had called her Mama.

And for the first time, she truly TRULY felt like Rachel's mother just as much as Shelby was.


	46. Too Busy

**Meant to upload this yesterday but my account had some sort of glitch and it wouldn't let me log in... sorry it's so short. I plan to work on one tonight since I have no homework, but I'm pretty sure my ankle is sprained (long gym story...me and ultimate football simply don't mix) so I don't know if i'm going to have to go get that x ray-ed or whatever... :/ All I know is it's swollen, I can't walk on it, and it won't stop hurting no matter how it sits... *long dramatic sigh* so no promise of fast upload...might be taking a trip to the clinic or in worst case scenario the hospital... grr...**

**My deepest apologies. If I could write constantly every single day I definitely would.**

**Love** **Always, Hayley**

**Gemfinder360: maybe Rachel really wants to spend time with her mommies but they are really swamped with work or something and Rachel throws a fit because they told her that they'd never be too busy for her.**

**Too Busy**

"Mommy! Mommy!" Rachel called throughout the apartment, her arms spread out like she was an airplane. She crashed into Shelby's back; she had been bent over, putting dirty clothes in the washer.

"Rachel," she laughed lightly, wiping her forehead with her sleeve. She was exhausted and it was only 11:30 in the morning… "I know it's fun to pretend to be an airplane, but can we please, for the hundredth time, not run in the house?"

"Sorry Mommy…" Rachel mumbled, then perked up. "Can we play Act It?!"

Act It: one of the many acting games that Cassandra and Shelby had created to teach the little five year old some early acting exercises. That particular one was more like charades than anything else.

Shelby gave a small wince. "I'm sorry, honey. I'm very busy today. I have to clean the apartment and I have a whole bunch of grades to put into the book before the day is done…"

Rachel pouted and stuck out her lower lip, crossing her arms over her chest—the first warning sign of a tantrum.

"Rachel Barbra," Shelby warned. "I'm sorry we don't always have time to play, but throwing a fit isn't going to solve anything."

Stomping her foot, Rachel was too stubborn to listen. "Fine. I'll go find Mama then."

"Rachel…" Shelby sighed, wanting to explain that life couldn't always be about fun to her five year old but not sure how. She didn't get a chance to, either—the little girl had already run off to find her Mama instead.

_Mama will play with me. _She thought to herself, angry with Shelby for not taking the time out of her day to play Act It with her. Act It was one of Shelby's favorites! Couldn't the laundry wait?!

"Mama! Mama!" Rachel did the same airplane thing that Shelby had just scolded her for as she ran out to the living room to find Cassandra, her mama, cross legged on the couch, with her laptop opened in front of her. She was staring intently at the screen, and typing at a rapid pace.

Rachel jumped up on the couch and sat next to Cassie, bouncing.

"Rach, honey, please don't jump on the furniture," Cassandra mumbled. "You know Mommy gets mad about that."

"Sorry, Mama." Rachel mumbled back. She was tired of getting scolded all day. It wasn't even afternoon yet and she'd already been scolded twice! What was that all about?!

"It's alright, sweetheart." Cass promised her, not taking her eyes off of the screen.

"Will you play Act It with me?" Rachel practically begged. "Mommy's too busy."

At this, Cassandra turned her attention to Rachel and smiled sadly. "Sweetie, Mama has a lot of work to get done today, too. I'm sorry. Maybe after dinner, okay?"

"But I wanna play NOWWW." Rachel complained dramatically—loudly. "No one has TIME for me." She crossed her arms and pouted and stood, stomping her foot as tears started to roll down her cheeks. "That's not FAIR."

"Oh, Panda-boo…" Cass's heart broke watching her little baby girl throw a fit over this. She felt bad that she didn't have time to play with Rachel right now, as she was sure Shelby did, too. But sometimes work was just unavoidable. She scooped her little girl up into her arms, after casting her laptop to the side, and wrapped her in a tight hug. Rachel was mad, so she tried to squirm out of Cassie's grasp, but Cassie peppered her with kisses to make her smile. "I'm sorry we're busy today, honey. Sometimes grown up stuff has to be taken care of before we can have fun."

"But you always say you're never too busy for me," Rachel sniffed, burying her face into Cassie's neck with a sob.

"Honey," Cass held her little girl close and kissed her forehead. Rachel was pretty warm, and Cass couldn't tell if she was just worked up or running a slight fever. She vowed to keep an eye on it. "I'm sorry, I really am. After dinner I promise I'll play Act It with you, okay? But I really need to get this paper turned in to Madame T."

Rachel knew who Madame T was, and she knew that if she wanted Cassandra to do something, it needed to be done right away. She nodded and wiped her tears with her hands; her brunette hair got in her face and she shoved it aside.

"And you know," Cassie gave her a tight little hug. "Maybe if you ask Mommy REALLY nicely, she'll let you help make dinner tonight. Would you like that?"

Rachel nodded her head very rapidly, up and down.

"Why don't you go ask her?" Cassie let her down and Rachel said,

"Okay!" and started to run back to the laundry room.

"Without running!" Cass called after her.

Rachel slowed, but not by much.

"Mommy! Mommy!" she crashed into Shelby again and Shelby couldn't help but laugh. Now she was folding towels.

"Can I help you make dinner?" Rachel asked. "Mama said I could." She stated matter-of-factly.

"Did she now?" Shelby smiled lightly. "Yes, baby girl, you can help me make dinner."

"Yay!" Rachel jumped up and down, excited she could finally do something with her Mommy. She was so bored and she didn't know what else to do until dinner, so she watched Shelby fold the towels into perfect rectangles. Rachel cocked her head to the side. "Can I help?" she asked.

Shelby hesitated; the brunette woman was often very OCD about how things were cleaned and folded and done, and she really didn't have time to refold everything today….

She looked at Rachel's imploring eyes and her heart melted.

_Oh, what the hell…_

"Like this," she showed Rachel how to fold the towels and to her amusement, the five year old did not do as horrible of a job as you would imagine most five year olds to do.

Rachel didn't care what she was doing—she was just happy that her Mommy let her help—that her mother's weren't REALLY too busy for her after all.


	47. Alone and Afraid

**Hello my lovelies, and thank you so much for you concern about my ankle. It means a lot that you all care so much. I have such loving readers, and I really appreciate that.**

**So you know what's going on, I did end up going to the hospital last night...**

**What had happened was that we were playing ultimate football in gym, and I was going one way and this kid was going another way and we blindsided each other. Well his heel hooked to the front of my right foot when we crashed into each other and he tripped. When he tripped, since his foot was hooked to the front of mine, it ripped my foot back and twisted it around, and then I landed on my ankle and my back (this was in a gym, so I landed on the wood floor, not like a football field)...so then I just tried to shake it off and limp the rest of the day. When I got home mom looked at it, declared it too swollen and insisted I go to the hospital (which was a good thing because it still hurt like a bitch, let me tell you). So then I got my ankle x rayed and they told me it's badly sprained, they wrapped it in a brace and ace wrap, prescribed ibuprofen, and told me to switch my brace out to an air brace in the morning. I'm also in crutches for a few days. It still hurts pretty badly, but I'm thankful it's just sprained and not broken, in all reality.**

**I'm hoping to recover soon. Until then, at least I'm out of gym...that's the only positive thing I can think of that came out of this...glass half full, glass half full...**

**Thank you all so much for your love and support and kind words!**

**love always, Hayley**

**Guest: I know this sounds pretty dark, but maybe you could do a prompt where there's a shooting or something at Rachel's school, and obviously Cassie and Shelby are going crazy.**

**(Well we had a lock down drill at school today so I had about an hour to think about how I was going to do this)**

**Alone and Afraid**

A seven year old Rachel Corcoran sighed heavily and glanced up at the clock in her classroom. It was only 12:30—they had gotten back from lunch 20 minutes before, but sitting through a history lesson made that twenty minutes drag on like each minute was an hour. She knew with a sense of dread that there were still many boring subjects to get through before she could go home to a Thursday night movie night with her mommies.

She wondered what they would watch that night—it was her Mama's turn to pick, after all, which meant it was completely up to Cassandra's mood, and how her day had gone. Rachel smirked to herself—it would probably be something like Cats again…

"…and Christopher Columbus was who?"

Rachel's teacher glanced around the classroom, hunting for vulnerable prey. She raised her eyebrows at the young brunette who was now staring at the pencil she was twirling in her hands. "Rachel?" she asked.

Startled, Rachel looked up at her teacher.

_Oh no,_ she thought to herself. _She knows I wasn't listening again…Did she ask me something?_

"…Yes?" Rachel wondered. Snickers echoed throughout the classroom at her being so unaware.

"I asked you a question." Her teacher said impatiently, crossing her arms.

"I'm sorry, I didn't hear you." Rachel gulped, wishing her teacher would catch her in her attentive state the other 98% of the time she was in school, as opposed to the 2% where she was daydreaming.

After the question was repeated, Rachel answered, "He discovered America…" confidently. As if to say, "See I pay attention, usually, even if you do bore me to tears."

Squinting her eyes, the teacher continued with her lesson and left Rachel alone. Rachel looked back up at the clock and sighed again. She wished anything would happen so that she wouldn't have to finish her classes for the day.

. . .

The first shot rang out throughout the school and made everyone in the classroom jump in fear. It was 1:25, almost an hour after Rachel had made her wish. She dropped her pencil and froze—she didn't know what was going on but suddenly she really regretted her wish. She watched as her teacher's eyes widened in complete and utter trepidation.

Rachel's ears were still ringing from the shot and she barely heard when her teacher said,

"Everyone, we're in lock down."

Scared, Rachel quickly took her sweatshirt from off of the back of her seat and ran towards the back wall with everyone else, to hide under their cubbies. She put her sweatshirt on and wrapped her arms around herself, feeling very vulnerable and very frightened. Another shot rang out and tears started streaming down her face without her even realizing she was sobbing. Santana was out sick and she had no one to cry with. She had no one to hug. She wanted her mommies. They would hold and hug her.

Another shot.

What if she didn't make it home to see her mommies?!

She cried harder.

Who would do this? Why was someone shooting a gun?! Was someone hurt?! Were people dead?!

Rachel whimpered and pulled her hood up over her head, pulling her knees up to her chest under her sweatshirt as her tears rolled down her face. She loved her sweatshirt. It was her only comfort in this time of need. It reminded her of her mommies, because they had it custom made for her—black with Rachel's name on the front written in cursive silver; a gold star underneath it. It smelled like her Mama—Cassie had sprayed a very light spritz of her perfume on Rachel that morning upon Rachel's insistence.

Other people were crying around Rachel, but Santana was all Rachel had. Everyone else had other friends to hug and hold. Rachel didn't have anyone else. She wanted her mommies. She wanted Santana.

Then a thought occurred to her. Oh, but what if she never saw Santana again?! What if the person with the gun somehow got to her and she could never go see her best friend again?! She covered her mouth so the person with the gun wouldn't hear her cries. She glanced over at her teacher—a tear slid down the older woman's cheek.

Rachel shook, her arms wrapped around herself tightly, rocking back and forth, pressed up against the cold concrete wall. Her sobs were muffled and the lights were out and there was nothing but silence, the gun shots ringing in her little ears.

. . .

Shelby had the news on in the background while she put grades into her computer and was reading the essays of her Music Theory class. She was so thankful that she had.

Upon hearing the name of her daughter's elementary school, her head perked up, so quickly she nearly gave herself whiplash.

She heard, "…one teacher has been injured, as well as one third grade student..."

"INJURED BECAUSE OF WHAT?!" Shelby threw her laptop to the side, nearly breaking it in the process. She didn't get her answer right away but her heart started pounding. Rachel was in second grade, which was right next to the third grade classroom where a student was just injured. She didn't get her answer. "INJURED BECAUSE OF WHAT?!" her voice cracked this time she said what and she nearly broke down to call Cassandra then and there.

Two seconds later she got an answer from the news, "…the shooter has yet to be identified and police are standing guard outside the school…"

"Shooter. Jesus Christ." Shelby speed dialed Cassandra and threw her jacket on, as well as her boots.

"Shelby?"

"Cassie," she already had tears streaming down her face in worry and her throat was constricted; tight as she tried to voice, "Someone has a gun in our daughter's school."

Cass, who had been instructing a waltz, cut the music with a sharp slice of her hand. "What?!"

"Cassie, a third grader has been hurt as well as a student and…" Shelby drew in a sharp breath—she was practically running the fifteen blocks to the school—a taxi wouldn't be fast enough. "…and a teacher as well and they haven't identified the shooter and…Cassie our baby…"

"CLASS DISMISSED." Shelby heard Cassie yell hoarsely away from the phone. She put her face back to her cell, grabbed her jacket and ran out the front door of the school. "I'll meet you in front of the school."

"Keep talking to me!"

"I'm here, baby, I'm here…"

"Our little girl, Cassie, our baby—"

"She's in second grade, Shelby she's not—"

"SHE COULD BE HURT AT ANY MOMENT."

"I KNOW I'M FREAKING OUT AS BADLY AS YOU ARE."

People on the street stared as Shelby yelled into her phone but she didn't care. Two more blocks to go. Was Rachel okay? God no she wasn't okay!

Cassie and Shelby hung up as they saw each other turn the corner in front of the school. Police tape lined the entrances and exits. As soon as Shelby and Cassie stepped in front of the school they were forced back behind a line of orange tape with some of the other parents. Cassie fell into Shelby's arms and held her tightly. Shelby held tightly back—both women terrified.

"She must be so scared," Cassie cried into Shelby's shoulder.

"Baby…our little Rachel…No….what kind of sick, cruel human being…"

"Shelby….Shelby baby I can't breathe…"

So they held each other in silence, trying to catch their breath, trying to wipe their tears.

They wanted their little girl; they wanted their baby. God, they hoped she would make it out okay.

. . .

It had been two hours since the last shot. Rachel felt like she was running out of tears to shed and was instead just dry heaving, still rocking, counting every time she went back and forth.

"One gold star, two gold stars, three gold stars…" she whispered under her breath so that only she could hear.

When she counted as high as she could she started whispering, "Close your eyes on Hushabye Mountain…" she knew that her Mommy would sing that to her if she was ever scared. And her Mama would harmonize. And things would be great. But things weren't great. Things were scary.

Just when they thought things might be settled down again, another shot rang out.

. . .

A shot rang out and Cassie and Shelby jumped in each other's arms, as well as many of the other parents did. Shelby let out a light scream into Cassie's shoulder and Cassie rubbed her back, trying to be brave for both of them. But she couldn't, she couldn't be brave. There was a gun shot and her baby girl was in the building. Tears flew down her face faster than they ever had before.

"What if…" Shelby whimpered.

"No, no, honey, no what if's…Think positive, okay?" Cassie knew she wasn't one to talk but she said it anyways. "That wasn't Rachel. It wasn't Rachel. It wasn't…" her voice cracked and she looked up to see police officers rushing about, calling codes and words into walkie talkies. Sirens were going off, and then were immediately turned off. News vans were driving up, and there were cameras everywhere. Everything was hustle and bustle and Cassandra couldn't help but get furious. Her baby girl was in that building. She didn't care about any fucking reporter getting a good news story out of this—she WANTED HER DAUGHTER OUT OF THE SHOOTER'S POSSIBLE RANGE.

. . .

It seemed like hours later, and when Rachel finally saw what time it was, she realized it really had been hours later, when a police man unlocked their door and gave them the all clear. Rachel couldn't move. She felt paralyzed. Stuck. Terrified. Images flashed through her mind of what could have happened if the shooter had gotten into the room she was in. She hugged her knees. She didn't stand, even though she desperately wanted to see if her mommies were outside waiting for her. She was positive they were. Unless they didn't know about the shooting, she thought to herself. But they had to know, her mind contradicted. They had to.

She sat there, wondering.

She wasn't the only one. Multiple students were shaking, staring at a spot on the ground in front of them, unable to move. Paralyzed with fear.

Slowly, unsteadily, her teacher was the first to stand.

A few students mimicked her actions.

But not Rachel.

Rachel stayed sitting.

Cassie and Shelby dashed to Rachel's classroom, clutching each other's hands tightly, desperately, and ran through the door of the room; the first of many parents to hug and hold their precious children. Rachel's eyes widened with grateful tears when she saw them. "Mommy…Mama…" she wept; heartbroken and sad. She wanted to stand but she couldn't. She couldn't get her legs to work right.

"Oh my god, Rachel…"

Shelby picked her up and Rachel wrapped one leg around each mother, holding them tightly, crying.

"Don't put me down. Don't put me down. Don't let go. Don't let go. Don't let go of me, please. Don't let go."

She was so shaken up.

Everyone was.

"We've got you, baby." Cassie cooed in her ear, peppering her with kisses. Shelby kissed the other side of her face.

"We're not going to let you go, ever, Rachel." Shelby promised her.

They held their little girl tightly, in the aftermath of what had happened.

Two had ended up injured, and one teacher was dead.

They felt horrible that anyone had to be hurt or dead at all. They grieved and mourned with everyone else.

But they were also thankful—so very very thankful that their little girl was okay. That she hadn't been one of those who had gotten hurt or killed.


	48. Injury Pt2

**A Pt. 2 to Injury, (which was written a while back), after being prompted ideas from keeperofwords and being inspired by my sprained ankle. At least some good came out of this injury of mine xD**

**Injury Pt.2**

It had been about 3 months since Cassandra had broken her ankle (damn that Freshie not knowing how to catch properly). Despite Shelby's constant begging her to take things easy, Cassie was a dancer and she had to get back to work. So recently, she had been trying to work the strength back up in her ankle.

Finally, she'd put on toe shoes and was practicing at the barre, working on balance and strength. She had 15 minutes until her final class of the day. After a few minutes of balancing, she started practicing minor spins, grasping the barre for support. Her ankle had stopped hurting weeks ago, but she had to be sure she could dance again.

She was completely focused on the task at hand. Mid-spin, the door of her studio burst open, and a fellow professor walked in. Startled, Cass spun on her foot the wrong way, causing it to flip to the side. She let out a growl of pain and stood flat foot, moving to sit on the ground so she could get the ballet slipper off.

"How can I help you, Xavier?" she asked, trying to seem like she hadn't just re-hurt the ankle that had only just healed.

"Are you…okay?" he asked, concerned. "I didn't mean to startle you—"

"No, it's fine," she lied through her teeth. "I'm okay, it was my fault. I didn't do the spin right anyways." The last part was true. She hadn't had enough support on her ankle and had tried to push limits in an attempt to spin it right.

"…If you're sure…" he didn't seem to believe her and, despite the fact that she could feel the stinging and throbbing pain of her foot swelling up after she took off her slipper, she grinned and dealt with it silently.

"Positive." She tried to reassure him. "What's up?"

"I was just wondering if you got the cast list from Tibideaux…about the Winter Show-case?"

"What?" she was momentarily distracted, looking down at her ankle in serious disappointment and wondering how in the hell she was going to tell Shelby that she'd gotten hurt again. "Oh, the Winter Show-case. Yes, I got the list."

"You sure you're okay?" he wondered a final time.

"Peachy. I have a class to teach." And as if on cue, her students started filing into the class room, stretching. She couldn't have been more thankful. She picked up her cane and leaned against it, hissing through her teeth a long breath as she tried to walk over to her chair. She knew she hadn't broken it—it felt different than when she'd done that. She hoped to god she'd just twisted it the wrong way or something, but the way it was starting to swell and throb so quickly, she was thinking this was more like a sprain. There was no way she would be able to hide that from Shelby. The damned woman would take her to the hospital again, she was sure of it. Even if she insisted it wasn't as bad as Shelby would think it is.

She commanded the class from her chair; the hour dragged on for an agonizing amount of time, and her foot simply would not stop throbbing. Every few minutes she'd suck in a sharp breath as her leg seemed to catch on fire. Why, dear god, did this hurt so badly? It was just a sprain! It wasn't like it was re-broken!

"Jesus Christ…" she muttered under her breath after the last student left her studio. She changed into sweatpants (maybe that would cover her leg and she could get away with what had happened to her without her wife noticing, though she highly doubted it. But really, it just hurt…it wasn't as bad as Shelby would think it was.

She leaned on her cane for support and tested the walking waters. If it was just sprained, she knew it wouldn't hurt to put pressure on it. (Well, it would certainly _hurt_, but it wouldn't do further damage to her foot, in any case). She took a step and nearly cried out. After breaking it, wouldn't a sprain feel like nothing? She clenched her teeth and took the cane away, trying to walk again. She discovered that stepping on her toes didn't hurt nearly as bad as her entire foot and decided to walk based on that new found knowledge.

. . .

Later on in the night, she found out her little star was down with a cold and a small fever. Cassie knew that Shelby would focus on Rachel since she was sick, and became lax with the way she started limping around the house. Eventually, while she was doing dishes and after Shelby had gone to check on Rachel, she very barely made her way to the sink. She hadn't realized that Shelby was right behind her.

Shelby's eyes widened. "Sweetheart, are you limping?"

Cass spun around and stopped herself from screaming when her ankle barely turned with her.

"No," she shook her head. "What are you talking about?"

Shelby placed her hands on her hips in that don't-you-even-fucking-dare gesture that she always did. "Cassie, baby, is your ankle bothering you again?"

"Maybe a little?" Cass admitted, shrugging and turning to face the sink again. She was tough. She could take a little sprained ankle. Especially since she'd already handled it broken. "But it's fine, Shelbs."

"Maybe take an ibuprofen?" Shelby suggested.

Cass shook her head. "No need, it's not that painful."

"Oh, really?" Shelby said condescendingly. "So I didn't just see you limp to the sink."

"That was so NOT a limp."

Shelby was already getting tired of these games. "Oh really." She crossed her arms over her chest and walked all the way over to the opening of the living room. "Walk over to me."

"Shelby," Cass sighed. This was exactly the thing she wanted to avoid. She didn't want Shelby making a big fuss over her. She just wanted to have a normal, hospital free, medicine free night. She just wanted to relax. "This is ridiculous." Cass rolled her eyes.

"If it's so ridiculous, then you can make it over to me, right?" Shelby shrugged. "Well then get over here."

Tilting her head to accept the challenge, Cass took a step forward on her good food and smiled. "See? I can walk! It's a friggin miracle, isn't it?"

"Walk on your bad foot, Cassie." Shelby said, her patience being tested and pushed.

"It's not a _bad_ foot…" Cass sighed and started walking. She took a deep breath and counted in her head, trying to make the pain go away and ignore it. Being an actress, she thought she might have had Shelby fooled even a little bit. She was horribly wrong. She winced by accident when she didn't take the time to very slowly step on her foot and sighed. She knew it was over. Shelby was going to point it out whether she tried to hide it or not.

"Baby, what did you do?" Shelby questioned. "Come here…"

Cassie limped over to the couch and sat down where Shelby instructed. "Let me see it," Shelby pleaded.

"Shelby, my ankle is—"

"If you hurt it on top of the brake, you may never dance again." Shelby deadpanned. "Let me see the damn foot."

Reluctantly, Cassie lifted her pant leg to reveal a red, swollen ankle.

She sucked in a breath when Shelby placed her hand on it, softly trying to see if it could be turned. "Baby, it's sprained." She came to the conclusion.

"I know…" Cassie whined. "I know. I don't know what to do."

"Why did you try to hide it?!" Shelby couldn't for the life of her figure Cassandra out sometimes.

"Because! I didn't want it to be a big deal, especially after my broken ankle…"

"Well that's why it was sprained so easily…" Shelby stood and went to the freezer for an ice pack, wrapping it in a towel before very gently placing it on Cassie's ankle. "It was still recovering from the break. What were you doing that caused this?"

Cass widened her eyes in protest, shrugging her shoulders defensively. "I was just practicing some _minor_ spins, I was caught off guard, and I landed wrong. Maybe I deserve the pain; I was an idiot to screw up that move. My ankle is fine; go take care of Rachel." Cass was in a sour mood, feeling tired and angry at herself, as well as in pain. She'd thought her pain on this ankle was gone for good but she had to go and hurt it again.

"Rachel's resting." Shelby said softly. "Nice try, but you aren't getting out of this. You don't deserve this pain, whether you think everything's your fault or not." She sometimes got so fed up with the way that Cassandra always blamed herself for things. How she always felt she deserved heartache, and physical ache. "I'm giving you an ibuprofen."

"I'm not taking it," Cassandra protested. "No, Shelby, I did this to myself and I'm going to pay for it."

"You are such a pain in the ass." Shelby stood with a huff. "Fine, you know what? Be in pain. I don't even care." And she walked away with an eye roll. Cassandra rolled her eyes back and called out,

"Fine! This is why I wasn't going to tell you! Just let it be!"

Hours later and Cassandra was still ignoring the sharp pains in her leg, sitting on the couch and reading a dance book. Shelby glanced over at her and winced. She should really have her leg elevated. The swelling was just getting worse, it clearly needed to be at least ace wrapped…and some ice wouldn't hurt, either.

"Cass…"

"No, Shelby."

"Baby, doesn't it hurt?" Shelby asked, exasperated. Why didn't Cassandra ever just listen for once?!

"Doesn't matter." Cass muttered, turning the page and staring at it, intently.

Shelby let out a loud groan. "Yes it does!"

Before they could argue it any further, a little Rachel made her way out towards them, putting a hand on her forehead.

"Hello munchkin," Shelby smiled at her.

"Hi…" Rachel mumbled, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

"Think it's about time you took some more cough medicine, yeah?" Shelby wondered.

Rachel scrunched up her nose. She didn't like the cough medicine. It tasted gross. "Do I have to?" she asked.

"Yes, panda-boo, you do." Shelby smiled softy; sympathetically. "And so do you!" she turned and scowled at Cassandra. Cass scowled back and was silent, continuing to stare at the book.

Rachel crinkled her eyebrows. "Why does Mama have to take cough medicine?" she wondered. "Do you have a fever too, Mama?" her eyes were wide and imploring.

"No, sweetie." Cassie told her.

"Mama hurt her ankle again, Rachie," Shelby informed her because she knew Cassie wasn't going to.

"But Mama is _fine_," Cass exaggerated the word.

"_Mama_ needs to take something for her pain." Shelby fought back.

"_Mama_ will be fine without it." Cassandra looked up at Shelby.

"Well if Mama doesn't have to take medicine than neither do I." Rachel decided, confidently crossing her arms over her chest. Before she could make a fantastic storm out, she was thrown into a coughing fit.

"Yes, you do." Cassie told her sternly. "Mama is an adult, you have a cold."

"But medicine will fix you!" Rach told her.

"Medicine will fix you too, Rachie." Cass said.

"Then if it'll fix both of us we should both take it, right?" Her Mama was confusing her.

"Exactly." Shelby smiled triumphantly. "You're so smart, Rachel."

With a scowl, and an eye-roll, Cassandra finally relented and took the ibuprofen. She let Shelby wrap her foot and elevate it and put ice on it. She let her ankle be taken care of yet again by her lover.

Her recovery, thank god, did not take nearly as long as it had the first time.


	49. The Talk

**Hello my lovelies! **

**My ankle is slowly healing (wish it would heal a little faster) but all in all is doing well. Thank you all for the well wishes! **

**Before this story gets started, I wanted to address something. I got a prompt from a (guest:****I like this universe. What about one where Santana and Rachel break up for a bit? Maybe Santana git drunk and there's a JulyPez moment?).**

**I know I don't turn down prompts like EVER, but for this one I'm afraid I'm going to have to make an exception. I will explain why. Now, in any other universe (okay maybe not ANY other, but in another one) I probably would not mind JulyPez. It actually might make for an interesting story. However, that is not a prompt I can use in this universe. Cassie is like Santana's mother, and Santana is Cassie's daughter's age. It just doesn't work in this situation.**

**Still, I thank you very much for your reviews and ideas. I apologize for not being able to write that particular prompt but maybe if you think of another one I could****write it? I'm not saying it's not a good idea-just not for this universe, okay?**

**The prompt being posed now is one that many of you have asked for...tell me what you think of it!**

**Love always, Hayley**

**Guest: Maybe Rachel's mommy's talk to her about sex but Rachel is a teenager so it's awkward.**

**ComplexStatus: "The Talk"-I wonder how Cassie and Shelby handled it-maybe a pt. 2 to How Do I Know?**

**Guest: I'd love to see Shelby/Cassie giving Rachel the puberty/sex talk**

**Guest: ****Amazing please have a preteen Rachel talking to Shelby or Cassie about puberty and that**

**SDLS; The Talk**

"It's time we talk to her." Cassandra dead panned after Santana had gone home one night. She and Rachel had spent the entire night watching movies and holding each other, sharing sweet kisses every few minutes. It was adorable, but it was also something Shelby and Cassie did. The difference here was that Shelby and Cassie were adults, and were married. Cassandra worried, (as did Shelby, though she didn't voice her worry like Cassie did, in order to avoid this particular conversation), that those short sweet kisses and caresses would soon turn into something more.

At least, they always did with her and Shelby. And Rachel was a hormonal teenager, who was feeling in love.

"No, no, no it's not." Shelby shook her head, wrapping her arms around herself and biting her lower lip, staring up at Cassie from her position on the bed. Cass was pacing the room and Shelby had been reading before Cass interrupted her. "She's a little girl, and she doesn't need to know the gory details of-"

"She's thirteen, Shelby! She's not seven anymore!"

"Cassie, she's not ready!" Shelby tried to fight back even though she knew she was losing a battle.

"How old were YOU the first time you had sex, Shelby?" Cass demanded. Shelby widened her eyes and stood to shut the bedroom door so Rachel wouldn't hear them. Thank god Rachel was blasting music in her room and was completely oblivious as to the conversation they were having.

"I..." Shelby had to think about it. "I don't know..." she mumbled."Young...not much older than Rachel..."

"Exactly. Whether we like it or not, she's going to have sex with Santana eventually and we need to talk to her about it so she's aware of everything she needs to be aware of. That's why we're her parents."

Taking a slow, deep breath and leaning against the back wall, Shelby knew Cassandra was right-when did SHE become the mature one?!

Cassandra was shocked at herself, too. She took Shelby's hands and tried to explain why she was being so frantic. "Look, Shelbs, when I first got with you I was...okay we will NEVER speak of this again after tonight, okay?-but I was terrified. I had NO IDEA what to do. Had no idea of safety precautions we were supposed to take or how we were supposed to do what we were doing...schools don't teach that kind of thing. I had to look it all up on my own, and I trust Rachel and her thirst for knowledge, but-"

"But we need to be the ones to talk to her first." Shelby finished for her. "I know, I know that. I just...don't want to have to do that yet." she let out a breath.

Cassie nodded. It did seem too soon. It seemed as if Rachel had gone through a time machine; aging much too quickly for their liking.

"I think she's looking at our relationship and trying to emulate it." Cassandra admitted. "Which, I mean, isn't a horrible thing. Our relationship is amazing," she gave her wife a smile which was returned before continuing, "But we're married and have been together for fifteen years. She needs to understand the difference between our relationship and hers..."

"Right," Shelby nodded. "I mean, knowing her and Santana, they will end up marrying, but...still..."

A moment of silence took over and they just looked at each other for a little while, in contemplation. Finally, Cassie cleared her throat.

"Are we...do we do this right now?" she wondered.

Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, Shelby said, "I suppose now would be the time, wouldn't it? What exactly are we going to talk about? Surely not...everything? We want to inform her, not give her ideas..."

"Protection for sure," Cass decided. "Feelings...maybe a bit of the mechanics? But no not everything." everything seemed like way too much. "Maybe a touch about guys as well? Just, you know...in case?"

"Okay." Shelby nodded, knowing Cassie was right. It was just that they were talking about talking to their little daughter about serious, adult stuff. "Okay."

She hadn't let go of Cassie's hand and, together, they took a deep breath and walked into Rachel's room. They hadn't bothered to knock on the door-her music was so loud, she wouldn't have heard it anyways.

The brunette jumped when she spun around and saw her mothers.

"Oh!" she hit her stereo off. "I didn't hear you come in."

Cass sniggered. "How could you, Little Miss Fanny Brice?"

Rachel had been belting along to "Don't Rain on My Parade". She smiled softly and raised her eyebrows. "So, what's up?" she asked. "Am I in trouble?"

Cass was amused to feel Shelby actually trying to fight off shaking next to her. Was she really so nervous about this? She knew Shelby didn't want to scar the girl, and neither did Cassie. That's why they had talked about it before they talked to Rachel. Cass gave her wife's hand a tight squeeze and Shelby squeezed back before starting,

"No, sweetheart, no you aren't in trouble. Mama and I just think the three of us need to have a talk."

"Oh-kayy..." the subject of the discussion hadn't registered in Rachel's head yet as she sat down on the front of her bed and watched as her mother's sat at the end; Cassie cross legged and facing her and Shelby with her knees pulled to her chest. Rachel figured it was a miracle in itself that they all fit on her twin bed but she didn't say anything about it.

"Rach," Cass started.

Rach looked from her Mama to her Mom and that's when it registered. "Oh god...can we please, PLEASE not do this?!" she put her face into her hands.

"Rachel, I know you don't want to have this talk, but it is definitely necessary." Shelby said, her voice serious.

Cassie on the other hand, let out a little scoff. "You don't have to be embarrassed to talk about sex with us, Rach. Have you MET me? Come on, now." she was trying to make it lighthearted. At least then, she figured, Shelby might not freak out so much about it and Rachel would be slightly less embarrassed, and they could all walk away from this in one piece. God, did she hope that would be the case. Shelby gave her a sideways glance and couldn't help but let the corners of her lips turn up into a smile. She knew what Cassie was trying to do.

Rachel took a slow deep breath and sighed. "Okay. What do you want to tell me that I don't already know?" She folded her hands in her lap and tilted her head, looking very serious and mature. It smacked Cassie in the face how much Rach looked like Shelby in that moment. She let out a soft laugh.

"Oh?" she raised an eyebrow. "Why don't you start by telling us what you know and where you got that information little miss already-been-informed?"

Rachel bit her lip and looked down at her hands. "I've looked some things up," she admitted, her face reddening slightly. "I know mechanics and stuff...and I know it's a serious thing that you only do with someone you truly truly love. And I know storks don't bring babies."

"Where did you learn about the mechanics of lesbian sex, Rachel?" Shelby couldn't help but wonder, (and could not believe those words were coming out of her mouth).

The teenage girl's face grew even redder as she slowly reached under her mattress and pulled out a book and magazine, tossing them towards Cassie, who caught them and bit her lip to fight laughter. So Rachel was being sneaky now, was she?

Shelby's face got white as she recognized her and Cassie's book and lesbian magazine.

"...Rachel, did you take that from our bedroom book shelf?" she asked calmly.

Slowly, Rachel nodded.

"I was embarrassed to talk to you about it and I...I wanted to know..."

Cassie flipped the magazine open-the page that was bookmarked had an article labeled, "How to Please Your Partner". Pressing her lips together tightly, (Cass and Shelby had read this page on more than one occasion) Cass said in a low voice, "Rachel, I need you to be honest with me-are you and Santana having sex?"

"No!" Rachel defended, waving her hands in front of her. "No, no, not yet...I'm still a virgin."

Shelby let out a breath she didn't know she was holding and Cassie focused on the word "yet". She spoke again,

"Did you plan on having sex with her soon? You're...you're only 13."

"Not like...super soon..." Rachel mumbled.

"Not like...ever..." Shelby wanted to mumble back but held her tongue.

"I'm...Mama, I'm in love with her." Rachel admitted. "I really am. I have been, for forever. I know sex is a serious thing. Neither one of us is ready for that. But I was just...preparing for when we are ready...so I know what I'm doing."

Shelby knew she couldn't be mad at Rachel for trying to be prepared. She knew that she really had no right to be mad at Rachel at all. Rachel was actually being very responsible about all of this. But that didn't mean she didn't have something to say about it.

"Rachel, next time you're curious please promise you'll talk to me or your mother, okay? You don't have to steal lesbian sex books off of the shelf, honey."

"Okay." Rachel nodded. "I know that now. I'm sorry."

"It's alright, Rach," Cass laughed at her curious little daughter. "Do you have any questions right now?" she wanted to make sure they were hitting every point.

"Um..." Rachel thought about it for a second. "I mean, not really...the book pretty much told me what I needed to know."

Cass and Shelby knew that first hand-Shelby had bought it when she first fell for Cassie, and Cassie had snuck reading it when Shelby was in classes while she was at home.

"Just know, baby girl that this is a very adult thing that you're learning about. Making love to somebody...it's special. You can't do it with just anybody-you were right when you said it has to be someone you TRULY love. When you have sex with someone, you're giving them a part of you that is very private-it's a very intimate thing. There's nothing casual about it."

Rachel nodded. "I understand, Mom. I do."

"And just in case you ever get with a boy-" Cassie started.

Rachel scrunched her nose. "But I love Santana."

Shelby couldn't help but wonder if Rachel knew how serious the word "love" was-though they had grown up together-but she shrugged it off for now. She wasn't going to argue with her daughter about it-the heart wants what the heart wants.

"Okay, we understand that." Shelby nodded. "But in case you do..."

"Guys clearly have a different anatomy than girls. That being said, if you're EVER with a guy, you need to be careful. Use protection. Be SAFE. You need to be safe with girls too though. Just because you're sleeping with a girl does not mean you can't get STDs..."

After a long talk about the joys of using protection and the possibility of being on birth control if she was ever with a guy, Rachel actually felt the opposite of how she felt when the conversation began. Originally she was embarrassed, and felt guilty and humiliated for being caught with the book as well as the magazine. But now she actually felt a lot closer to her moms. She felt like she could be more open with them about everything. More importantly, she felt like she didn't have to steal their sex book for information in the future.

Shelby was thankful that her daughter had educated herself and was not in fact having sex. Cassie was extraordinarily thankful for the same thing and that things had gone so well.

"So...what have we learned tonight?" Cassie stood, giving a quick review.

"Always use protection, get tested for STDs, be aware of your partner and their feelings, be aware of your own feelings, no sex until you're both ready, don't let anyone pressure me, talk through feelings before and after, don't steal lesbian sex books from your moms."

"Good girl," Shelby felt much more relaxed then when this conversation began. She kissed the top of Rachel's head. "I love you so much. And you're growing up so fast."

Rachel rolled her eyes and smiled. "Moommmm," she hugged her mom back and then accepted a hug and kiss from her Mama as well. "I love you both so much too."

...

"That went well, I think." Cass jumped up onto her and Shelby's bed and pulled the covers up over top of her.

"Better than expected," Shelby nodded and joined her, not realizing Cassie was still carrying the book and the magazine. "So it's only 10:30...what do you want to do?"

"Well, Rachel turned her light off and is going to sleep..." Cassie's tone was suggestive. "And we have this handy little magazine we could read..."

Shelby smirked. "After a sex talk?" she teased.

"Well," Cassie leaned in for a kiss, which she was given. "We've been tested for STDs, we love each other very much," she cuddled up very close to Shelby and Shelby wrapped her legs around Cassie with a grin.

"And we happen to be married," Shelby pointed out.

"Yes," Cass kissed her again. "There is that."


	50. PMS Cassie

**Just a bit of fluff ****that I wrote at 2 in the morning while watching House. xD**

**Love always, Hayley**

**SDLS, PMS Cassie**

"Ughhh..." Cassie groaned and leaned forward on the couch, her arms wrapped around her body. "Whyyyyyy?!"

Her period was driving her crazy. It wasn't always this bad but when it was...

She could hardly stand. She wanted to scream.

Another wave of cramps hit her like a ton of bricks and she nearly did yell out in pain. Cassandra July was a tough woman, but cramps could take her down in a heartbeat. It pissed her off. It drove her crazy.

When she was able to, she stood and walked to the kitchen for a glass of water.

There, she found Shelby sitting up at the island, on her laptop.

"Hey, baby," Shelby mumbled, not looking up from her work. She'd previously had head phones in-hadn't heard Cassie groaning and wasn't aware she was having a horrible time of the month.

"Hi." Cass mumbled, taking a Midol and downing a glass of water furiously.

Double blinking at the rough response, Shelby shook off Cass's mood. "Long day at work?" she guessed, shutting her laptop and stretching as she stood, her shirt lifting ever so slightly to show off her belly button. Through her anger and frustration, Cass had to smile lightly at the sight-something missed by Shelby. She made her way towards Cass.

"I want to strangle those kids for not having talent," Cass grumbled.

"Mmm." Shelby saw the Midol bottle on the counter and shook her head slowly back and forth, placing the back of her hand to Cassie's cheek before placing a soft kiss on her temple. "Sounds to me like you want to strangle your uterus, for existing."

"Ughhhhh," another cramp made Cassie shudder. "Maybe..."

After giving a kiss on the nose, Shelby got out the heating pad. Ten minutes later and Cass was sprawled across the couch, her head in Shelby's lap, the heating pad across where her uterus was. Shelby ran her fingers through Cassandra's long blonde hair, soothingly. Cassie nearly hummed at the contact.

Knowing she needed to help Cassie become less stressed, Shelby moved her hands to Cassie's neck and started massaging her, slowly, intimately.

Cass let out a light moan. "I love you." she whispered.

"I know." Shelby gave a soft smile. "You're cranky when you're in pain."

"I have a right to be," Cass fluttered her eyes shut and tried to focus on Shelby's hands, which were loosening the tight muscles in her neck.

"I know, baby. I know." She placed a kiss to the top of Cassie's head. Cass took the heating pad off-she was getting too hot from it-and Shelby replaced it with her massaging hands.

"Ouch! Damn it, Shelby, why the hell would you-" Cass tried to protest.

"Give it a minute..." Shelby shook her head at Cassie's impatience.

After letting out a growl, Cass relaxed under Shelby's touch. The brunette was right, to Cassie's annoyance, it felt freaking incredible.

Later on, Shelby was feeding her chocolate and cuddling with her on the couch as they watched movies that Cassie liked. Thankfully, Rachel was having a sleepover with Santana, and hadn't witnessed her mother's frustrated state.

"You always know what to do," Cass sighed into Shelby's neck.

Shelby rubbed soft circles into the small of Cassie's back. "You say it like it's a bad thing." she laughed lightly.

"Thank you." Cassie whispered. "I love you."

"You love me because I soothe your cramps. I'm just your cramp soother." Shelby teased.

"Mmm." Cassie agreed jokingly. "Among other things."

"So you're not still mad?" Shelby wondered. "Are you in a better mood now?"

"You always put me in a better mood," Cassie kissed her neck softly.

"Good." Shelby tilted her neck back so Cass could kiss her better. "You know that's my life's ambition."

"Now who's the one with the attitude?" Cass laughed lightly.

Shelby kissed her. "Certainly not I."

"No, never."


	51. All Wet! By keeperofwords

**So this one was written by ,my writing friend keeperofwords...it was a little thing that popped into her head while I was writing A Promise pt.1 and A Promise pt.2, so it's supposed to take place while they were on the cruise. It's short but I thought it was great and she's given me permission to post it. :)**

**love always, Hayley**

**"****All Wet!"—Little tribute oneshot from keeperofwords**

"Mama catch me!" Rachel squealed excitedly, the big gold star on her purple swim suit sparkling in the sunlight.

"Mommy look!" Rachel called, jumping in Cassie's arms.

Shelby looked up from her set list she was going through for the night just in time to see her little girl jump right into her lovers waiting arms. Rachel's best friend Santana was standing patiently on the side of the pool, waiting her turn.

Cassie caught her little polliwog and lifted her in the air, giving Shelby a good look at her lover's toned abs and lovely chest that was poured into the black bikini. Shelby had to admit, Cassie looked damn good.

Cassie could feel her lover's eyes upon her as she lifted Rachel to the side of the pool and stepped back for Santana's turn. Santana did more of a jump, splashing both Shelby in the lounge chair and spraying Cassie whose blonde hair now stuck to her face.

"Sorry Santana got you wet Mommy," Rachel said innocently, looking at her mother who had somehow managed to keep her sheet music and set list dry.

"Your Mama had already done that, sweetheart," Shelby spoke to Rachel but looked at Cassie who had leaned back in the water to fully wet her hair. Blonde hair was slicked back and water dripped down Cassie's bare neck and down her chest.

"What did she mean Rachie?" Santana asked innocently as both girls held onto Cassie's bare waist in the water.

"Mommy and Mama's are just silly. They will be kissing later when they send us to bed," Rachel answered her friend.

"Mama what did Mommy mean you already got her wet?" Rachel asked innocently causing Cassie to pucker like a fish then shut like a clam.

Luckily for Cassie Rachel did not really want an answer. The little girl climbed up the pool ladder and clambered to the side.

"Mama catch me!" Rachel squealed to Cassie

"Mommy watch me, Mommy watch!" she told Shelby again.


	52. Surprising Finds, keeperofwords

**So, my writing friend keeperofwords (we write Fragile Reunion together) and I were discussing my "sex talk" chapter and this idea popped into her head. Well she described the idea wonderfully but I was in the middle of writing other things and didn't think I could possibly give her idea justice. Therefore, I coaxed her into writing it and this wonderfully written thing came about. :)**

**That being said, this chapter was written by keeperofwords.**

**Tell us what you think!**

**Love always, Hayley**

**Written by keeperofwords**

**Surprising Finds**

Five year old Rachel saw something in the grass as she slid off of the slide during recess. It looked white and rubbery and very strange. Her teacher was calling her class in from recess. She wished Santana was in her same kindergarten class; she would know what this was, but Rachel would not see Santana till Kindermusic in their encore class at the end of the school day. Rachel stuffed it in her jeans pocket, got in line and followed her class back into the school.

"So Sanny what do you think it is?" Rachel asked whispering. She knew she was supposed to be singing but they had already sung this song every day for a week and was tired of it.

"It looks like one of those water balloons clowns use to make those animals at the circus," Santana told her.

"No way. It has to be a sling shot for marbles," Rachel answered back. Her head shot up when her teacher called on her asking her to lead the class in the next verse. Rachel stuffed the rubber thing in her pocket. She would have to ask her moms.

"Rachel get changed out of your leotard, your Mommy is making spaghetti," Cassie told her daughter who looked more and more like a mini version of her wife every day. "And put your leotard and your clothes you wore today in the laundry basket in your closet. I need my dance clothes washed so I am doing laundry."

"Yes Mama," Rachel said, happily dancing around still thinking of how fun dance was tonight. She took her Mama's arms and danced around with her a few minutes till Cassie tickled her and sent her to her room to change.

Cassie had learned the hard way to check Rachel's pockets when doing laundry. One day she had not, and glittery purple Chap Stick had ruined a whole load of light colored clothes with panties, bras and some of her favorite dance outfits. She had intended to do this before dinner, but Shelby had asked her to make the salad. Shelby had Rachel in the bathtub now, so it was her first opportunity.

"Pennies, rock, acorn," Cassie mumbled shaking her head at what she found in Rachel's pants pockets. She set aside the items out of her little white Capri's on top of the dryer and then reached for her pair of white jeans. Just as she was about to check the pockets, Shelby's voice rung through the apartment.

"She wants her Mama to read to her tonight," Shelby said to Cass from the laundry room door. "I can get that. I think she wants you to read "How Do Dinosaurs Say Good Night" for the millionth time."

"Well, at least it is not "Pat the Bunny" like when she was two," Cassie said kissing Shelby's cheek and handing her partner Rachel's jeans. "I have not checked the pockets in this one yet. I'd best go if we want to share that bath tonight."

"With lots of bubbles," Shelby whispered in the blonde's ear nuzzling it before pulling away and reaching down her hand to check Rachel's jeans pockets. After sharing a kiss with the promise of a night of intimacy to come, Cassie walked to Rachel's room and Shelby got back to the business of getting in a load of clothes. Cassie needed to have something to wear tomorrow to work after all.

The brunette always felt she had to wash her hands after she dug into the pockets. One day she had even found a live worm. God be praised she had grown out of her bug and worm faze from the spring.

"Hello Kitty sticker, bubble gum paper, condom," Shelby said aloud then gasped. Shelby pulled her hand away like it had been burnt. The condom had been removed from the package wrap and had been stretched out. She let it drop on her linoleum floor and looked down at it not quite believing what she was looking at.

_What is my barely five year old doing with a "Rubber" in her pants pocket?!_ Shelby asked fighting with herself what to do now. She wanted to scream for Cassie. She wanted to scream at Rachel. She wanted to go to Rachel's teacher and scream at her for not supervising her and ask her how in the world her little innocent child ended up with a condom. In the end, Shelby decided she would join Cass and Rachel for tonight's bedtime story.

"Mommy, Mama just finished reading but you still got here in time for kisses," Rachel said yawning smiling at her mommy.

"I am glad I did not miss kisses," Shelby told her daughter, sitting on the foot of the bed so she could look up at Rachel and Cassie (Rachel had crawled into her Mama's lap). It was the time of night that Rachel had called snuggle time. Who-ever's turn it was to read her a story had to do snuggle time before she went to sleep.

"Your mommy would never ever miss kisses would she?" Cassie said, softly petting Rachel's hair trying to coax her to dreamland. The blonde knew the sooner than happened, the sooner Shelby would be willing to take their bubble bath and continue their evening. The blonde was surprised when Shelby shook the foot of the five year old to rouse her from drifting off.

"Rachel, baby, I found something really interesting in your pocket in the pants you wore to school today," Shelby told Rachel, moving from the foot of the bed to squeeze in tight on Rachel's twin bed with her lover and child.

"Don't throw anything away Mommy. I need it all. You know that," Rachel said sleepily then opened her eyes remembering her prize she found by the slide. "Mommy did you throw away my clown balloon? Please tell me you did not throw it away. Sanny said it was one so it has to be so. I thought it was a sling shot thing but I think Sanny was right."

"Rachel where did you get this "Clown Balloon"?" Shelby asked curiously, whispering "condom" to Cassie, whose eyes got as big as saucers as she smiled, fighting not to start laughing.

"By the slide," Rachel said simply. "I picked it up and put it in my pocket so I could show Sanny in Kindermusic. She did not know what it was for sure, so I brought it home to show you and Mama."

"Rachel, you know I don't want you picking up things out of the grass. Don't you remember the worm?" Shelby said, trying to keep a straight face as Cassie sat there shaking trying not to laugh.

"But Mommy? I wanted us to blow it up so I can play with it?" Rachel decided her mommy did not like it and if she did not get Mama's help, her prize was going to be in the kitchen garbage can. "Mama, Mama please? Can you blow it up and we can play? You and I can dance and throw it up and catch it."

Shelby glared at her lover, speaking to her with her eyes. Cassie knew she would get nothing tonight and may end up sleeping on the couch if she did not handle this right.

"Rachel, your balloon is all dirty and was white. What if we go down to the dollar store after school tomorrow and get you colored balloons?" Cassie spoke gently, speaking softly to Rachel and petting her hair while at the same time pleading with her lover with her eyes, to forgive her for almost laughing and saying a snarky comment to a five year old.

"Purple ones?" Rachel said simply yawning and curling further into her mommy's lap who had started to rock her. "Mommy, sing," the little diva ordered her other mom grabbing for Shelby's hand and clutching it to her tiny chest.

"Purple ones, pink too, and we can buy you a new hairband if they have some," Cassie said kissing the top of Rachel's head and humming along with Shelby.

"Love you Mama. Love you Mommy," Rachel murmured as she drifted off and she received a kiss on each cheek from her mothers.

"Love you," both mothers whispered as she exited the room. As they closed the door, both women started laughing.

"Does this mean I get lucky tonight? Did I do well, Shelbs, and restrain myself from saying rude crude comments to a five year old?" Cassie asked taking her lover in her arms and nuzzling her neck.

"If you get the rubber off of my floor and take out the trash while I mop and start the laundry you will," Shelby answered with a smile and peck on the cheek but Cassie knew that Shelby was dead serious.

Later in the bathtub, wrapped in Cassie's arms, Shelby's mind was still on that condom her innocent baby had brought home in her pocket.

"I am going to call the school tomorrow and demand they clean the playground better," Shelby spoke on the verge of getting worked up. "Or better yet, I am going to demand to see the principal." Before she could say more she felt a warm washcloth begin to wash her back and Cassie's other hand start to rub tiny circles on her stomach. Any words Shelby was planning ended up in a groan followed by a sigh.

"You were saying?" Cassie whispered feeling triumphant that she had saved not only their evening but staved off one of Shelby's moods.

"Shut up and take me to bed," Shelby answered pulling Cassie down for a breathtaking kiss.

So Cassie did just that.


	53. Author's Note, Not a ch, but please READ

**Hello my lovelies. I apologize if you thought this was a chapter, (the next chapter will hopefully be done soon) but I have to talk to you all for a minute.**

**Please, hear me out.**

**I REALLY don't want to seem like i'm being picky with prompts. Keep that in mind.**

**But I was prompted to do a smut chapter while Rachel is away one night, and now I suppose I'll have to tell you why I don't write smut chapters.**

**It's not that I'm opposed to them (particularly not ones about Shelby and Cassandra...I understand why you would prompt that...) and under different circumstances, I wouldn't be entirely opposed to posting it.**

**However, and this will likely sound very pathetic and goody-two-shoes of me no matter how I word it, I'm still 15, and my parents still have control over about 90% of my life. That being said, I have family members (my sister, some cousins, a few aunts) who read some of my stories (god only knows which ones) as well as my parents who occasionally read a few chapters of one and then DON'T tell me which one they read... (I learned the other day that my mother had intended to start reading Get it Right and then suddenly found herself reading Dirty Little Secret...).**

**Anyways my point to that part of the rant is that it would be my luck that someone in the family would chose this story and end up reading that particular chapter and then my parents say something along the lines of "Oh so THIS is what you spend hours a day working on?" and shut me down for good.**

**My fear, in posting a smut chapter, is that they will make me stop writing if they found it and or found out about it. And writing for all of you, and for myself, is the only way I have found that I can truly cope with all of these emotions and feelings and everything I have (as fellow writers I'm sure some of you can relate to that feeling) and I reallly REALLY just can't risk losing that.**

**I hope that made sense and that no one is too disappointed.**

**If it was up to me, if I were a little older and my parents COULDN'T shut me down, then I probably would've written it.**

**I hope I haven't upset anyone in not writing (now 2) of the prompts given to me.**

**All of that mini rant out of the way, I hope you'll all enjoy the next chapter (I should be finishing it sometime this week...if I don't get swamped with homework again :( ) I will only spoil you in the fact that it WILL be another installment of Welcome to NYADA.**

**With love always, Hayley**


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